155 Chinese lacquer panels arrive at Tsarskoye Selo
Chinese craftsmen recreated 155 wall lacquer panels for the apartments of Catherine II. They were delivered to the museum-reserve after two years of work using traditional techniques.
Apr 22, 2026 0
The lacquer panels were recreated by Chinese artisans using traditional techniques over two years.
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In Tsarskoye Selo, 155 lacquer panels have arrived, made in China for the personal chambers of Catherine the Great in the Zubov Wing of the Catherine Palace. Chinese specialists worked for two years to recreate the decorative elements lost during the Great Patriotic War, using historical methods. The project documentation was prepared by architects of the Tsarskoye Selo Amber Workshop.
The total area of the artistic painting on all panels is nearly 170 square meters. The panels were delivered by air from Beijing to Moscow, then by road to St. Petersburg under the supervision of a specialized company for transporting museum valuables.
Director of the Tsarskoye Selo Museum-Reserve Olga Taratynova noted: «We awaited this moment with trepidation — it completes the multi-year restoration of the Zubov Wing, carried out with the support of Gazprom. During the work, our researchers traveled to China and monitored every stage. It was important that the recreated panels match the lost originals, and the Chinese craftsmen succeeded.»
Installation of the panels on the walls is planned to be completed by summer 2026. The interiors of the Zubov Wing itself opened after restoration at the end of 2024.
The panels depict:
- figures of people in landscapes and on clouds;
- Taoist immortals;
- landscapes with palaces, bridges, pavilions, gazebos, trees, capes, and islands.
Back in 2022, the Beijing art company Xinxingshi (meaning «Dancing Lion») created two trial panels. They were executed in the traditional techniques of kuancai (polychrome carved lacquer, known in Europe as Coromandel) and miaojin (black lacquer with gold painting). These samples were displayed in the Chinese Hall after approval by the museum«s restoration council.
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