PALACE OF FACETS

Description

Essentials about the Palace of Facets in brief

The Palace of Facets is one of the rather unknown buildings of the Moscow Kremlin, but still definitely worth a look. The Palace of Facets, which adjoins the Grand Kremlin Palace, is not only the oldest part of the Grand Palace, but also the oldest secular building in Moscow preserved to this day. From the outside, the southern and eastern facades of the Palace of Facets can be seen, located directly on the Kremlin’s Cathedral Square, between the Annunciation and Dormition Cathedrals. The Palace of Facets owes its name to the distinctive shape of its eastern facade. It is adorned with horizontal rows of sharp-edged stones, which give the impression of a facetted surface. On its western side, the palace directly adjoins the central building of the Grand Kremlin Palace, where there is also a transition between the two buildings.

The history of the Palace of Facets

In 1487, Grand Duke Ivan III “the Great” had the Palace of Facets built as one of the first stone structures of the Kremlin, after a series of fires had repeatedly devastated the fortress, which until then had been dominated by wooden buildings. Marco Ruffo and Pietro Antonio Solari, the two Italian architects who had the greatest architectural influence on the ensemble of the Kremlin, were commissioned with the construction. The palace was completed in 1492 and from then on served as the most important venue for ceremonial receptions of the tsar, coronation celebrations, banquets, acts of state and similar ceremonies.

Over the centuries, the Palace of Facets essentially retained its function as a ceremonial and meeting space, although it suffered repeated damage in major fires and was remodeled or rebuilt several times in its history. To this day, the palace is used for official receptions of the Russian president for high state guests.

The architecture of the Palace of Facets

Although from the outside the cuboid building looks three-storeyed, in reality it has only one floor, to which belong the two rows of windows not always symmetrically arranged on the facades, and a plinth floor used only for economic purposes. The cladding of all four facades of the palace is made of white stone, which makes the building one of the typical architectural monuments of early modern Moscow.