After the reconstruction
of the Winter Palace in 1839, structural improvements continued to be made in
the layout of the rooms.
A mezzanine was
constructed in 1841 with ‘iron beams’ above Alexander II’s valet’s room.
Hau’s 1874 watercolor
(below) of the valet’s room with the mezzanine.
The ceiling, designed by
A. Bruillov in 1839, was hidden upstairs in the mezzanine, seen only by
servants, for decades.
Today it is again
visible to all (photo below).
In Hau’s painting, the
narrow hallway in the center leads across the Dark Corridor to Alexander’s
dressing room.
To the right of the
hallway is the enclosed staircase to the mezzanine, 3rd floor, and 1st
floor.
The small room on the
opposite side, with its interesting history, will be described in my book.
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