CHICAGO, ILL. – Stretching across nearly half the circumference of the earth, Russia is a land writ large. The vast expanse of its geography is matched by the great diversity of its people, the beauty of its art, the sometimes violent pageant of its history, and the richness of its material and cultural resources.
Russian history and culture will come to light in the United States in “: 1,000 Years of Russian Gems and Jewels,” an exhibition that will run at The Field Museum from October 21 to March 30, 2001.
Drawn from the vast array of treasures in Moscow’s Kremlin Museums, “” presents 120 masterpieces of gems, jewels and precious metal objects, including many never before publicly displayed and many others that have not been seen in the United States. The objects, both secular and sacred, represent major chapters in Russia’s storied past, from the introduction of Byzantine Christianity in 988, through the turbulence of the Mongol invasions of the Thirteenth Century, to the rise of towering figures such as Ivan the Terrible, Boris Godunov, Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, and Nicholas and Alexandra.
The treasures on display testify to the splendor of Russian culture and the wealth of the region’s mineral resources. Breathtaking in their scope, they include thousand-year-old icons excavated on the Kremlin grounds, diamond- and sapphire-encrusted crowns belonging to the tsars, Twelfth- and Thirteenth-Century articles from the buried Ryazan treasure hoard, a gold- and jewel-encrusted Gospel from the Fifteenth Century, a Seventeenth Century miter of gold thread and pearls, and two imperial Faberge eggs.
Admission to “” is basic museum admission plus $5 for adults; $2.50 for children ages three to 11; and $4 seniors and students with ID. Free for members. Basic museum admission is $8 for adults; $4 for children ages three to 11, students with ID, and seniors. Basic admission is free on Wednesdays.
The museum is open from 9 am to 5 pm every day of the year except Christmas and New Year’s Day. For information, 312/922-9410.
