Since 1872 when it was established, this museum has developed its collection to over one million works of art collected by members of the Romanov dynasty.
It was originally built for the royal collections of antiques, but its 39 halls now document centuries of Russian and human civilisation, all the way back to the Stone Age. You can’t miss the museum’s striking red neo-russian exterior, with tall spires, ornate windows and kremlin-style towers. These have recently been restored, after Soviet officials declared the building’s murals too gaudy, and covered them over.