The distinguished guests were taken on a guided tour of the museum by its director, Mikhail Piotrovsky. The three exhibition rooms – Avanzal, Nikolayevsky and Concert halls – housed the jubilee exhibition “To the Founder of St Petersburg” devoted to Emperor Peter the Great.
One of the largest exhibitions the museum has mounted in recent years, it includes more than 1,000 rare items. Most of them date back to the era of Peter the Great and bear witness to the work and life of the reforming tsar who turned Russia to face Western civilisation. On display are the tools that Peter the Great used, his technical drawings and plans and personal belongings.