The history of the Hermitage started in 1764, when the empress Catherine II acquired works of art for her private collection from the Berlin merchant J. E. Gotzkowsky. Since then, already for 4 centuries, the Hermitage has been a magnet for all the art lovers of the world.
The exposition of the museum follows the development of world art starting from the Stone Age up to the end of the XX century. In the museum one can see the works of such great masters as Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Titian, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Rubens, Van Gogh and many others.