Photo: museums and exhibitions, parks and recreation, castles, fortresses and palaces, Kuskovo, Moscow

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Kuskovo Estate: an Opportunity to Plunge into the World of Moscow Nobility

Museums and Exhibitions • Parks and recreation • Castles, Fortresses and Palaces

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The summer residence of the Counts Sheremetev, the Kuskovo Estate, is a unique architectural and art ensemble of the 18th century and one of the most beautiful estates of the Russian nobility. Nearly 20 architectural monuments has been preserved here, including the Palace in the style of Russian classicism, the Great Stone Orangery, the Grotto and the only regular French Park in Moscow with several pavilions and a church.

The Kuskovo Estate houses one of the world’s largest museums of ceramics and glass with a collection of 50 thousand items, from antiquity to our times. Moreover, the Palace has retained the original layout and interiors with original furniture, decoration and works of Russian and West European art of the XVIII - XIX centuries. But the essential zest of the palace is the local tricks, invented by Sheremetev himself. For example, a wall decorated with marble, papier-mache embellishments, porcelain vases with painted fish inside, secret doors and an organ that starts playing unexpectedly if someone approaches it. This estate often hosted more than 30 thousand guests, for which a luxurious park with pavilions, gazebos, a menagerie and a hunting lodge was designed. There was even a miniature flotilla of rowing boats on Kuskovo ponds. Today, tourists can also rent a boat and go for ride in the count's ponds. Kuskovo is a favorite place for the newlyweds who register marriage both in the park and in the White Hall of the Italian house. On weekends, you can witness a stunning wedding ceremony.

Kuskovo Estate: an Opportunity to Plunge into the World of Moscow Nobility

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