On this day – 17th August (O.S. 4th) August 1917 – the Imperial Family arrived in Tyumen, following a three day journey by train, their final destination was Tobolsk. Tyumen is situated just east of the Ural mountains.
Nicholas wrote in his diary: “We advanced unbelievably slowly, in order to reach Tyumen late at night. There the train went right up to the jetty, so that we were able to get straight onto the steamer.
“Ours is called ‘Rus’! They started loading our things, which took all night. God only knows when poor Alexei got to bed again? The bustle and noise went on all through the night and prevented me from getting to sleep. We left Tyumen at about 6 o’clock.”
Today, there is a small museum dedicated to the Imperial Family in a building, formerly owned by a shipping magnate in Tyumen. While their stay was brief, their presence in Tyumen is of no less importance to the story of their lives in exile.
PHOTO: the steamer ‘Rus’
History of the Tsar’s Pier
Before the 1917 Revolution, the board of the West Siberian Shipping Company was located in the building on the embankment in Tyumen. It was founded by a merchant and entrepreneur, an honourary citizen of Tyumen, the philanthropist Ivan Ivanovich Ignatov (1833-1914). Skillfully attracting private investors, Ignatov turned the enterprise into a major center of shipbuilding and river transportation.
In addition, he built the first local power plant in the city, illuminating the streets and embankment of the city. He laid a railway track along the Tura to the pier opposite the building of the shipping company.
More than a century later, the house was bought by another highly respected Tyumen resident V. Savchenko. With the help of city residents, the Tsar’s Pier is today a museum dedicated to the memory of Nicholas II and his family.
Why the Tsar’s Pier?
Local historians studied a lot of historical and archival documents and discovered that in August 1917, on the embankment opposite the building of the shipping company, the family and retinue of Emperor Nicholas II. Nicholas II spent the last night in Tyumen in the building of the shipping company.
In honour of this historic event, a memorial was laid. The pier was named ‘Tsarskaya Pier / Царская пристань’.
The exposition dedicated to the Imperial Family is located on the second floor. The exhibition presents: portraits, photographs, books, as well as household and interior items of the time. This room was named in honour of Olga Kulikovsky-Romanov (1926-2020), the widow of Tikhon Kulikovsky (1917-1993), the eldest son of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna (1882-1960) – youngest sister of Nicholas II.
River Tyumen
Pre-revolutionary Tyumen and its environs were an important center of shipbuilding and a transshipment point, where food, building supplies, and agricultural goods were loaded and unloaded around the clock.
The permanent exhibition of the Tsar’s Pier Museum also features exhibits dedicated to these industries.
Visitors can familiarize themselves with the statutory document of the West Siberian Shipping Company Partnership, signed by Emperor Nicholas II. Archival photographs of pre-revolutionary Tyumen and its citizens, models of ships, shipping maps and much more are presented.
PHOTO: the chapel, located in the building of the Tsar’s Pier Museum
Some of the museum exhibits are located in the courtyard of the museum and on the embankment. These include ancient massive anchors raised from the bottom of the Tura.
In addition, are two memorial crosses dedicated to Russia’s last Tsar and his family, including one installed by the Cossacks – see photo located at the end of this post.
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*As I have noted in previous posts, I support any initiative – big or small – to help keep the memory of Nicholas II and his family alive in 21st century Russia – PG
PHOTO: Larissa Kovalchuk and Anna Sadrieva at Livadia Palace
On 11th August 2025, Livadia Palace hosted a meeting between the new Director of the Livadia Palace Larissa Kovalchuk and the President of the Nicholas II Foundation, who also serves as the Director of the Museum of Emperor Nicholas II in Moscow, Anna Alexandrovna Sadrieva. Together, the two parties agreed on mutual cooperation and discussed plans for future joint exhibitions.
The Emperor Nicholas II Foundation was created on 21st May 2021, to support the Museum of Emperor Nicholas II (Moscow), as well as other initiatives to help restore and disseminate the historical truth about Russia’s much slandered Tsar. During the last 4 years, the Foundation have hosted dozens of events, offered hundreds of museum tours, while expanding their collection with new acquisitions.
The Museum of Emperor Nicholas II (includes VIDEO) is based on the unique collection of the famous Russian art historian Alexander Vasilyevich Renzhin, which was formed over the course of 35 years and contains more than 3.000 authentic objects dating from 1868 to 1918, including personal items which belonged to Emperor Nicholas II and members of his family.
Livadia was a favorite vacation spot for the Imperial Family, overlooking the Black Sea on the southern coast of Crimea. Here, among the dense greenery of the centuries-old park, in addition to other buildings of the former estate, the New Grand Imperial Palace, made under the direction of the architect Nikolai Petrovich Krasnov (1864-1939) for the last Russian Tsar, stands out.
Emperor Nicholas II spent about 4 million gold rubles on the palace. The palace contains 116 rooms, with interiors furnished in different styles. In November 1911 Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna celebrated her 16th birthday at Livadia. The Imperial family visited Livadia in the fall of 1911 and 1913 and in the spring of 1912 and 1914, often spending months at a time.
In 1922, the former Imperial Residence was opened to the public as a museum, however, it closed 5 years later due to a lack of visitors. On 30th April, 1918, German troops entered Livadia and immediately began to plunder the palace. After the end of World War II, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945), the 32nd President of the United States, expressed an interest in buying Livadia Palace. In July 2022, Livadia Palace marked its 100th anniversary as a museum. Sadly, nearly all of the palace’s former furnishings were lost.
The beginning of discussions and cooperation between the two large museums dedicated to the life and reign of Emperor Nicholas II, and the everyday life of his family, is a step towards joint educational projects and exhibitions that will help immerse visitors in Imperial Russian history during the late 19th to early 20 centuries.
With an artist’s eye and a surgeon’s precision, Olga Shirnina — who works under the name Color By Klimbim — uses Photoshop to breathe new life into black-and-white photos from Russian history.
Olga Shirnina — who works under the name Color By Klimbim
Olga Shirnina was born in Schwerin (former DDR). She studied at Moscow State Pedagogic Institute of Foreign Languages, where she received a Ph.D. in Germanisctic. Following her studies, she has worked as a professor of German at Moscow State Pedagogic Institute of Foreign Languages and that of Alma-Ata.
Having a special love for arts, she started working as a picture colourist, producing her first work in 2011. Continuing, she published a website and a Facebook page with her colourings, which led her in receiving some significant commissions.
She colorizes photos purely “for pleasure.” The most thrilling part of the coloring process, says Shirnina, is “when suddenly the person looks back at you as if he’s alive.”
Shirnina says it takes her around one full day to colorize a photo, though she’ll usually wait another day before publishing in order to see things with “a fresh eye.”
Olga is fascinated by Russian history, which she finds full of dramatic, cataclysmic events, which not only had an impact on the history of the country, but also on the rest of the world. According to her, “Sometimes a picture can say more than many words are able to, and it gives me great pleasure to add to people’s knowledge and learning about Russia, through my work in colourings”. She also finds it interesting to work with colours, achieving different effects or copying the manner of great painters of the past.
Olga has contributed to the The Romanov Royal Martyrs Project by undertaking the colourization of all the pictures of the project. In addition to her artwork, she has been able to locate most of the Russian archival material used for the project and has undertaken the transcription work of many handwritten manuscripts.
Olga Shirnina’s colourized photos are also featured in my interview The Conspiracy Against Nicholas II, which aired on YouTube in August 2018. My seven-minute interview was one of a special six-part video series commemorating the Romanovs Martyrdom Centennial in 2018, prepared by the Monastery of St John the Forerunner Mesa Potamos in Cyprus.
To date she has colourized dozens of black-and-white photos of members of the last Russian Imperial Family, all of which are exceptional in their own right. It is Shirnina’s collection of colourized photographs of Emperor Nicholas II, which are my personal favourites:
PHOTO: artist’s concept of the proposed monument, to be installed in Mogilev
A monument to Emperor Nicholas II and his family is to be installed in Mogilev, Belarus. The sculptural composition – seen in the above photo – will be installed in Gorky Park [not to be confused with the famous Gorky Park in Moscow], situated next to the Square of Glory.
Nicholas II in Mogilev
Recall that from August 1915 to March 1917, Mogilev served as the military capital of the Russian Empire. It served as the headquarters of Emperor Nicholas II, who assumed the position of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, from 5th September (O.S. 23rd August) 1915. He settled in the Governor’s House, situated on Gubernatorskaya Square [now Square of Glory].
The headquarters were located in the buildings that stood in a semicircle on Gubernatorskaya Square. The Tsar occupied several rooms of the Governor’s House, and was often accompanied by his son and heir, Tsesarevich Alexei Nikolaevich. The headquarters was located in the building of the Provincial Government, while the building of the district court, was placed at the disposal of the General on duty of the Headquarters.
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and her four daughters often came to Mogilev to visit Nicholas and Alexei. The Empress and the grand duchesses lived onboard the Imperial Train during their stays.
To this day, the old-timers of Podnikolye retell the stories of their grandfathers, of when they saw the Tsar and his family riding on a boat along the Dnieper, walking in Gubernskaya Square (now Glory Square) and stopping to chat with ordinary citizens.
PHOTO: the Emperor (third from left) with Chiefs of Allied Military Missions on Gubernatorskaya Square, Mogilev. 1916
Both the Governor’s House, where Nicholas II lived with his son, and the building of the Provincial Government, were demolished in Soviet times. As a result, nothing has survived to the present day of the Tsar’s stay in Mogilev.
The building of the District Court, today houses the Mogilev Regional Museum of Local Lore. It was in this building, that Emperor Nicholas II said goodbye to the ranks of the headquarters and departments in March 1917. There is a display marking the farewell in one of the rooms located on the second floor of the museum.
Why Gorky Park?
In 1872, a city garden was laid in Mogilev, called Dembovetsky’s Garden. The initiative to lay the foundation belonged to the famous Mogilev governor Alexander Dembovetsky (1840-1920). During the reign of Russia’s last Tsar, it was renamed the Nikolaevsky Garden-Park.
Nicholas often walked here with Alexei and members of his retinue. The paths, which were lined with trees, converged in the central square, dominated with a beautiful fountain. The garden-park featured three observation gazebos, a wooden theater, elegant benches and round flower beds.
PHOTO: a marble plaque is today, the only reminder that this was where the headquarters of Emperor Nicholas II, stood from August 1915 to March 1917
Many years later, in 2014, the Church of the Holy Royal Martyrs was erected in Gorky Park in memory of the Imperial Family.
The monument to Emperor Nicholas II and his family will be installed near the church, although no time frame has yet been established for the completion of the project.
In recognition of these historic dates, I am reaching out to friends and supporters for donations to help support my research on the life and reign of Nicholas II, and in aid of my personal mission to clear the name of Russia’s much slandered Tsar.
There are many web sites, blogs and Facebook pages dedicated to the Romanovs, however, I work very hard searching Russian archival and media sources to bring something new to the table every day, including articles and news stories – from Russian archival and media sources – on Nicholas II and his family, the Romanov dynasty, their palaces, exhibitions + photos, videos and more.
Every dollar collected goes toward the acquisition and translation of documents, letters and diaries from Russian archival sources. In addition are the first English translations of articles researched by a new generation of Russian historians, which challenge the popular negative assessment of Nicholas II, which prevails to this day.
Your donation also helps offset the cost of maintenance of my blog: Nicholas II. Emperor. Tsar. Saint, and the organization and promotion of Romanov themed events, such as the 2nd International Nicholas II Conference and other events.
If you enjoy all the articles, news, photos, and videos, please help support my work in the coming year ahead by making a donation.
On 17th July 2025, Archpriest Nikita Zverev, the dean of the palace churches, performed the Divine Liturgy in the Church of the Saviour of the Image Not Made by Hands [aka the Great Church of the Winter Palace], situated in the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.
The service marked the 107th anniversary of the death and martyrdom of Russia’s much slandered Tsar, his family, and their four faithful retainers, all of whom were brutally murdered in Ekaterinburg by members of the Ural Soviet in July 1918.
Archpriest Nikita was co-served by Rector Hieromonk Mark (Svyatogorov), Hieromonk Tikhon (Voronov), Archpriest Maxim Kvasov, Priest Artemy Naumov, and Hierodeacon Ilya (Vasiliev). They were joined by the combined choir of singers of the St. Petersburg diocese.
Among the worshippers were the Director of the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Mikhail Borisovich Piotrovsky, and museum staff.
“Passing by the Winter Palace, it is a great happiness to see the dome of this church and to know that prayers are heard here again,” said Father Nikita. – “The history of Russia’s last Tsar and his family began with this church. Everyone who comes here sees on the right a picture depicting the wedding of Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna [see below]. The sacraments were performed in this very church, . . . and now, many years later, we can stand and pray where they once prayed. This temple is of great historic importance, one which is associated with the fate of the Fatherland. I thank the museum staff who have preserved all this to this day. If we do not know our history, remember the tragedy that happened, there can be no happy future for Russia. Let us appreciate what we have, both sorrows and joys, and remember that the Lord will never leave us.”
Recall that the last Russian Emperor, Nicholas II, and his family were shot on the night of 16/17 July 1918, in the basement of the Ipatiev House in Ekaterinburg. On 1st November 1981, they were canonized as new martyrs by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR), and on 20th August 2000, as passion bearers by the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church.
And let us not forget the four faithful retainers, who remained with the Imperial family during their house arrest in Tobolsk and Ekaterinburg, and who followed them to their deaths in the Ipatiev House, on 17th July 1918: the valet Aloysius Trupp (1856-1918); the maid Anna Demidova (1878-1918); the cook Ivan Kharitonov (1872-1918); and Dr. Eugene Botkin (1865-1918), canonized in 2016.
PHOTO: Wedding of Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna Painted in 1895 by the Danish artist Laurits Tuxen (1853-1927) From the collection of the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
The Great Church of the Winter Palace was consecrated on 25th July 1763 by Archbishop Gabriel in the name of the image of the Saviour (painted by Theodot Ukhtomsky, 1693), which was located in the prayer room at the altar. After the 1839 renovation, it was consecrated again by Metropolitan Philaret. The Maltese shrines presented to Emperor Paul I were kept here, and every year they were transferred to the Pavlovsk Cathedral [the Cathedral of the Holy Apostle Paul] in Gatchina for a month.
In October 1917, the church was damaged during the storming of the Winter Palace by the Bolsheviks and was closed in 1918. On 9th December 2014, the Great Church of the Winter Palace was opened to visitors after restoration, and on 25th December of the same year, the first Divine Liturgy in 96 years was served.
On 17th July 2025, busts of Emperor Nicholas II and Tsesarevich Alexei Nikolaevich (sorry, no photo available) were temporarily installed in the Russian town of Uryupinsk (Volgograd region), during a commemorative event marking the 107th anniversary of the death and martyrdom of Russia’s last Tsar and his family.
Plaster busts on pedestals were installed on the Square of the Fallen Heroes by members of the Union of Cossacks of Russia. Representatives of several Cossack organizations and the clergy of the local diocese held a prayer service and laid flowers.
After the ceremony, the busts were dismantled. According to the ataman of the local Cossack society in Uryupinsk, Dmitry Popolitov, a search is currently underway for a permanent place to install bronze busts of Nicholas II and Alexei Nikolaevich.
The event was organized by the Union of Cossacks of Russia, members of the 4th Don Cossack Regiment named after Count Platov, with the support of the Khoper Cossack District and the Uryupinsk Diocese.
It is interesting to note, that the plaster busts and pedestals were placed on the exact spot, where a monument to Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin stood during the Soviet period.
Recall that the monument to Joseph Stalin was erected in the Uryupinsk square of the Komsomol in 1948. Later, the square was renamed after Stalin. With the coming to power of Nikita Khrushchev in 1953, the monument to Stalin disappeared without a trace and was considered lost.
In 2000, a local resident, who wished to remain anonymous, told the authorities where the monument was buried. The monument of Joseph Stalin was found covered with earth on the territory of the former Khoper district prison. It was excavated and placed in the Uryupinsk Museum of Local Lore in an exposition dedicated to the defeat of Nazi troops near Stalingrad.
According to the Union of Cossacks of Russia, events such as this are important for preserving historical memory and preventing the recurrence of tragic events of the past.
On the night of 16/17 July 2025, tens of thousands of pilgrims, clergy and believers from across the Russian Federation and abroad, took part in the Divine Liturgy on the square in front of the Church on the Blood in Honour of All Saints Resplendent in the Russian Land in Ekaterinburg.
This year marks the 107th anniversary of the death and martyrdom of Emperor Nicholas II, his wife, their five children, and four faithful retainers, who were all brutally murdered in the Ipatiev House in the early morning hours of 17th July 1918.
According to the press service of the Ekaterinburg Diocese, this year’s Tsar’s Days was attended by residents of Ekaterinburg and the Sverdlovsk region, but also residents of different regions of Russia. In addition, were pilgrims from the Czech Republic, Uzbekistan, Serbia, Italy and other countries.
This year’s Divine Liturgy was led by 12 bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church, headed by Metropolitan Evgeny of Ekaterinburg and Verkhotursky. Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ was performed from 100 Chalices. The service was broadcast live by the First Orthodox TV channel “Soyuz” on YouTube, and Rutube-channels.
This was followed by a 21-km (13 mile) Cross Procession from the Church on the Blood to the Monastery of the Holy Royal Martyrs at Ganina Yama, in which 40,000 people took part. The procession, which began in the early morning hours of 17th July, took about 4 hours to complete on foot.
“There is no such religious procession, peaceful Christian movement in either Russia, or any where else in the world,” proclaimed Doctor of Historical Sciences Pyotr Multatuli, a noted historian and author, who is considered Russia’s foremost authority on the life and reign of Nicholas II.
The Cross Procession concluded with a moleben [a liturgical service of supplication or thanksgiving] to the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers at Mine No. 7, which is now sacred ground of the Monastery of the Holy Royal Passion-bearers at Ganina Yama.
Tsar’s Days are traditionally held with the support of the Sverdlovsk regional government, the Ekaterinburg city administration and the St. Catherine’s Foundation, which helps in organizing the celebration and supporting pilgrims with water, food, and transport.
Divine Liturgy – Church on the Blood, Ekaterinburg
21-km (13 mile) Cross Procession to Ganina Yama
Monastery of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers, Ganina Yama
Tsar’s Days
Recall that the first Cross Procession in memory of the Holy Royal Martyrs, headed by Metropolitan of Ekaterinburg and Verkhoturye Kirill, took place in 2002, in which more than 2 thousand pilgrims and about 100 clerics participated. It has been held annually in the Ural capital ever since.
PHOTO: the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire is in the Collection of the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation in the Moscow Kremlin
The Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire was made for the coronation of Empress Catherine II in 1762. The last Russian monarch who wore the Imperial Crown was Emperor Nicholas II, on the day of his Holy Coronation in Moscow, on 27th May (O.S. 14th May) 1896.
The Imperial Crown is a joint creation of a large number of craftsmen, but the main creators were two jewelers – the Frenchman Jérémie Pauzié (1716-1779) and the Swiss Georg Friedrich Eckart. The coronation of Catherine II was scheduled for 22nd September 1762, so there were only two and a half months for it’s preparation.
According to the surviving reports of the Diamond Workshop, it was Eckart who was given 3.96 pounds of gold and 20 pounds of silver for the manufacture of the crown and orb. A request, however, was made to Pauzié to draw a sketch of the proposed crown. The Frenchman’s version strongly resembled the crown of Empress Anna Ioannovna (1730) and looked like “an Orthodox church with its side gables and a raised central part crowned with an onion dome.” The diameter of the lower rim and the upper part of the hemispheres was almost the same, which gave the crown a bulky cylindrical shape. The arc connecting the hemispheres ended with a cross, on which a giant spinel was attached with the wide side down.
When Eckart saw the sketch, he “tore it up in anger.” The Swiss wrote a petition to Catherine with a complaint that the Frenchman’s drawing did not agree with the image of an Imperial Crown at all and was too reminiscent of a church in shape. Eckart created his own sketch of the crown, more elegant and harmonious: “the ellipsoidal hemispheres are strongly curved at the base and spread apart, making the crown look more compact. The dividing arc recessed between the hemispheres carried a cross and a giant spinel, turned wide side up. Due to the fact that Eckart made the frame openwork slotted, the finished crown turned out to be quite light in weight.”
When the frame was finished and it was time to inlay the stones, this work was entrusted to Pauzié. In preparation for the inlay, Pauzié used his original method: he made a wax model of Eckart’s slotted frame and tried different options for the arrangement of stones on it. Such a study made it possible to place each diamond in the most advantageous way, hide defects and emphasize the advantages. Pauzié was assisted in his work by six jewelers from Austria and one from France. Also involved in the creation of the crown were three Russian masters: Ivan Estifeev, Ivan Lipman and apprentice Ivan Nikiforov.
The crown was completed on time. All the masters received cash bonuses in addition to their salaries, Eckart was paid 700 rubles. Pauzié personally placed the finished crown on the head of the Empress, for fitting. Catherine II was “very pleased with it” and said she was confident that she would “somehow be able to hold the crown’s weight” on her head during the four hour coronation ceremony.
PHOTO: the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire (left), among the Imperial Regalia is laid out on a table in the Grand Kremlin Palace, in preparation for the Holy Coronation of Emperor Nicholas II in May 1896
Designof the Imperial Crown
The image of the Imperial Crown is inspired by Byzantine symbolism, each element of the decoration has a certain meaning. The two hemispheres embody the connection of East and West. At the bottom, the grid of the hemispheres is encircled by laurel branches, a symbol of power and glory, and in the garland drawing, oak leaves and acorns are placed between the hemispheres as an image of the inviolability of the monarchy.
The Great Imperial Crown reflects the change of stylistic eras: it is decorated in the spirit of early Classicism, but also bears traces of the Baroque that preceded it. During the reign of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna (1741-1762), massive Baroque jewelry with large precious stones of bright colors was in fashion. To give the diamonds a certain shade, a thin layer of colored foil was placed under them. From the 1760s, under Catherine II, court jewelry fashion began to change – the natural beauty of the stone began to be valued more highly, jewelry was made in more concise and restrained forms.
“I selected the most suitable materials, and since the Empress wanted not to change the crown after the ceremony, I preferred the largest stones, which were no longer in fashion, and so I created one of the most expensive jewels that ever existed in Europe. Despite the difficult task of making the crown as light as possible, using only the most necessary materials to secure the stones, it still weighed five pounds.”
– Jérémie Pauzié
A total of 5012 stones were used to decorate the crown: 75 pearls weighing 763 carats and 4936 diamonds, their total weight is 2858 carats. The height of the crown with the cross was 27.5 cm, the length of the lower circumference was 64 cm. The total weight of the jewelry is 1993.80 grams. In addition to materials from melted down jewelry from the Imperial Treasury, the work required an additional pound of gold and twenty pounds of silver for a total of 86 thousand rubles. The cost of the finished crown at the time of manufacture was estimated at 2 million rubles!
PHOTO: Emperor Nicholas II, wearing the Great Crown of the Russian Empire on the day of his Holy Coronation in Moscow, on 27th May (O.S. 14th May) 1896
After Catherine
The new crown became the main part of the Russian Imperial Regalia and the main symbol of power, it was worn only on the most solemn occasions, and the image was used on all heraldic signs. Following the established ceremony, the Great Imperial Crown was placed on the heads of all subsequent rulers of Russia, from Emperor Paul I (1797) to Nicholas II (1896). For each of the monarchs, the crown was adjusted to personal standards, this work was entrusted only to outstanding jewelry masters. The Great Imperial Crown was an integral attribute of imperial power and was used in solemn ceremonies – holidays, receptions, even funeral processions. The last time the Great Imperial Crown was worn by Nicholas II, was in 1906, during the opening ceremony of the first State Duma on 10th May (O.S. 27th April) 1906.
After the 1917 Revolution
In 1914, the Imperial Regalia, including the Great Imperial Crown, were evacuated from Petrograd [St. Petersburg] to the Armoury Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin. Because of the 1917 Revolution and the ensuing Civil War, the jewels were temporarily forgotten. Only in 1920 was the Gokhran, which collected jewels from the Romanovs, the Armoury, the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as valuables confiscated from private individuals. Many of these items were later sold abroad. In 1921, an official decision was made to use the “jewelry potential” for the benefit of the Communist Party, although the first secret deals date back to 1919.Between 1922 and 1938, the Soviet government auctioned off most of the jewelry that was not recognized as “valuable” to mostly British and American buyers.
It is interesting to note that in 1920, the estimated value of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire was a staggering$52 million USD!
Secret attempts to sell the Great Imperial Crown have been reliably confirmed, when, under the leadership of the Chekist Yakov Yurovsky (1878-1938), the Imperial Regalia and the main treasures of the Romanovs were taken from Moscow to Chita in 1923. The accidental publicity of the future deal created headlines in the international press and served as an impetus to stop the sale of crown jewels. It was this incident, which prompted Josef Stalin to issue a personal decree in 1934, ordering that the “tsar’s trinkets” were no longer to be sold and exported abroad, so as not to harm the reputation of the Communist Party.
PHOTO: “Comrade” Robert Yanovich Karklin (1892-1938) wearing the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire, Chita. 1923
In the photo above, Bolshevik thugs amuse themselves, as “Comrade” Robert Yanovich Karklin (1892-1938) – an authorized representative of the People’s Commissariat of Finance of the RSFSR under the Far Eastern Revolutionary Committee – poses with the Imperial Regalia. Karkin is seen wearing the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire, while holding the Imperial Orb and Sceptre.
Up until a few years ago, this photograph, taken in 1923 in Chita, had never been published, it was kept by Karklin’s daughter Victoria, in the family’s private archive.
Today, the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire is in the Collection of the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation in the Moscow Kremlin. According to Article No 7 of Federal Law No 41-F3 of 26th March 1998, it is part of an indivisible collection of unique jewelry in federal ownership and is not subject to alienation in any form. The Ministry of Finance of Russia is responsible for the safety of the fund, exclusion from the fund is possible only by personal decree of the president. All exhibits can only be used for exhibition and scientific activities exclusively on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin. The current value of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire is too great to be calculated or estimated.
PHOTO: replica of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire, recreated in 2012
Replica of the Great Imperial Crown
The idea of creating a modern interpretation of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire, belongs to Kristall-Smolensk – an enterprise with a world reputation, and leader of diamond processing in Russia. In tandem with its subsidiary, the Smolensk Diamonds Jewellery Group, famous for the perfect cut and impeccable setting of its jewellery.
The replica of the Russian Imperial Crown was made in 2012, to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty and the 250th anniversary of the original crown.
PHOTOS: two views of the replica of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire, recreated in 2012
More than 60 Smolensk craftsmen worked on the creation of a replica of the Great Imperial Crown for six months. It is made of white gold, encrusted with more than 11,000 diamonds of perfect cut and the highest quality. The sparkle of diamonds is accentuated by the matte brilliance of 74 natural large white sea pearls. Instead of spinel, the product contains a unique natural rubellite weighing almost 384 carats.
The creation and presentation of the Great Imperial Crown in a modern interpretation is a great opportunity to demonstrate the leading world position of the jewellery art of Russia. And two memorable historical dates were excellent occasions – 250 years since the coronation of Empress Catherine the Great (1762) and the four hundredth anniversary of the Romanov dynasty (1613).
CLICK on the image above to watch a short 2-minute VIDEO
This author has viewed both the original Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire in the Diamond Fund of the Moscow Kremlin, and the replica, which was on display in The Mint, located in the SS Peter and Paul Fortress, St. Petersburg. Both are exquisite works of jewellery art in their right.
Emperor Nicholas II is well known for his piety and devotion to the Russian Orthodox Church. As part of the Tsar’s Days-2025, a collection of rare icons of the 17th to early 20th centuries, which are stored in church and private collections, will be brought to Ekaterinburg. The exhibition presents icons of the patron saints of the Romanov dynasty, which were commissioned by the Russian emperors.
The icons will be on display at the exhibition “Heavenly Patrons of the House of Romanov” which opens on 15th July 2025, to the Museum of the Holy Tsar’s Family, situated on the second floor of the Patriarchal Compound of the Church on the Blood.
This event was organized by the Altai Diocese together with the Ekaterinburg and Altai branches of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society and the Russian Academy of Arts. This is the first time that the Ural capital has hosted such an exhibition.
The organizers of the exhibition shared the history of the exposition:
For more than three hundred years, Russia was under the rule of the Romanov dynasty. The Romanovs’ coming to power is associated with a prayer at the Miraculous Icon of the Mother of God “Feodorovskaya” and was marked by the overcoming of the Time of Troubles. Under the Romanovs, the country acquired the status of an Empire, profound political transformations were carried out, feudalism was replaced by capitalist relations, the peasantry gained freedom, economic and social reforms were implemented, and the population increased. The reign of the Romanovs ended with another time of troubles, in 1917. On 15th (O.S. 2nd) March 1917, the day of the abdication of Nicholas II , the Reigning Icon of the Mother of God was revealed to a peasant woman in Kolomenskoye. Many believe the reappearance of the icon was an indication that the Virgin Mary was displeased with Russia for dethroning Tsar Nicholas II during the February 1917 Revolution.
PHOTO: The original Reigning Icon of the Mother of God in the Church of Our Lady of Kazan, Kolomenskoye (near Moscow)
According to Byzantine origins, the life of the Imperial Family in Russia was largely determined by Orthodox traditions. The Russian monarchs, following the Byzantine ones, were called God’s anointed. There was a corresponding rite of enthronement, which was performed in the main Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. Solemn events, anniversaries and other holidays of the Emperor’s family were interwoven into the church rites. In churches, Diving Liturgies, public prayers and bell ringing were performed. For these occasions, special icons were ordered, on which the patron saints of representatives of the Imperial Family were painted. Such icons were made for the birth of grand dukes, for the wedding of heirs to the throne, enthronement and anniversaries. If an assassination attempt or accident occurred, and the respective member(s) of the Imperial Family were spared, then praise was given to God throughout the country, thanksgiving prayers were served, chapels and churches were built, or appropriate icons with selected saints were ordered. Moreover, for most people, the tsar was God’s anointed, and therefore, there was a prayer for the well-being of the tsar and his family members. And what is prayer without an icon? This is how new images were born.
After 1917, the Church and the monarchy became the main enemies of the new Bolshevik and later Soviet governments. The heritage of Russia was destroyed with special zeal, and it is not surprising that today such icons have become a rarity, which makes the exhibition a unique event for the spiritual life of the Sverdlovsk region – once a bastion of Bolshevism – and for Russia. The exhibition encourages a new look at the pages of the history of the ruling House of Romanov, which has so significantly influenced the history and modernity of Russia.
In addition, visitors will see the icons of the Most Holy Trinity of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, selected saints, the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, the image of Prince Vladimir Equal-to-the-Apostles of 1888, the version of which was painted specifically for the 900th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus. Particular attention should be paid to the long-suffering Job – he could have been a personal icon of the last Russian Tsar Nicholas II.
The exhibition “Heavenly Patrons of the Imperial House of Romanov” runs from 15th July to 31st August 2025, at the the Tsarsky Cultural and Educational Center, situated in the Patriarchal Compound of the Church on the Blood.
Nicholas II 
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