Museums of Russia: Museum-Reserve “Tsarskoye Selo” has got a unique collection of color photographs

Museum-Reserve “Tsarskoye Selo” has got a unique collection of color photographs made in the early XX century. Rare items are directly related to the history of the palace and are essential to the rebuilding of its interiors. The so-called auto chromes are purchased at auction in Paris thanks to the support of American patrons and they show what palaces of the Romanovs in 1917 looked like.

Auto chromes, purchased at auction in France, were made in 1917 after the family of the last Emperor was brought from the Alexander Palace by the revolution guards.

Auto chrome is a color image on the glass, which became popular in the early XX century. Lumière brothers, French photographers, invented it. This image, itself, technically consists of three overlapping raster - red, green and blue.

Since summer of 1917 the former imperial palaces hosted historical and artistic committee under the guidance of renowned art critic George Lukomsky. The first keeper of the palace has done tremendous work in the palace property inventory. Each interior fixed on auto chrome by war photographer Andrew Zeest. About 40 color photographs were added to the museum colelction in the 60s of the last century from the widow of Zeest. Most of the archive was taken abroad by George Lukomsky. At an auction in Paris representatives of the museum acquired 39 vintage photographs.

In comparison with an ordinary photography Auto chrome gives a clearer and more detailed image, when scanning a museum staff have the opportunity to explore the interiors in detail.

Auto chromes of Lukomsky change the view even of the most well-known interior of the Catherine Palace. Auto chromes were acquired by the American historian of the history of last Romanovs.