Did you know that at the end of the 19th century the Marble Palace was the center of the educational process? Not? Then we will now tell you how it was.

At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, three-quarters of the population were peasants, and after the liberation from serfdom, the need for agricultural knowledge began to increase sharply. It was then that agricultural educational institutions of various levels appeared, preparing agricultural specialists who met the requirements of that time. One of the organizations that gave knowledge to the people was courses in agriculture and natural history in the Marble Palace.

Since the autumn of 1899, the courses began their activities. Classes were held on Sundays. In winter, lectures were given from the beginning of November to April 23 in the Arena of the Marble Palace, and in the summer from June to August 15 – in Strelna. The courses were open to all comers of different classes from 10 to 18 years old.

Continuing the tradition of lectures in our palaces, we invite everyone to the cycle “The Hidden Life of the Gardens of the Russian Museum”, prepared by the head of the sector for accounting and monitoring of green spaces, candidate of biological sciences Ekaterina Alekseevna Zhukova.

The lectures will be based on biological topics: what mushrooms can be found in the gardens of the Russian Museum and, in particular, on trees, are they dangerous; what kind of insects are found in gardens and what birds can be attracted to pest control.

In order to better understand how all living things develop in the Summer and Mikhailovsky Gardens after the restorations of the beginning of the 21st century, at the beginning of the cycle there will be a short digression on the development of landscape gardening art. And the cycle will end with excursions to the gardens with an acquaintance with them through the eyes of a biologist.

A subscription (number 9) to the Mikhailovsky Castle lecture hall can be purchased at https://ticket.rusmuseum.ru/event/C718055117338D00815..

The first lecture is already on February 26, we will be glad to see you!