The Valet de Chambre Room of Paul I

A modest service room for the duty officer with a mezzanine floor, which is reached by a wooden staircase fromThe Small Study of Pavel Petrovich. The original layout belongs to Charles Cameron (1784–86), the decoration was carried out as per the project of Vincenzo Brenna in 1793. According to early inventories, the room contained a round mahogany table with an inkwell and a sandbox, a chest of drawers with four drawers, six chairs painted white and green, with seats and backs upholstered in green morocco, and one chair painted white, upholstered in red morocco. This furnishing is typical for the decoration of residential and service palace rooms of the late 18th century. In Russian sources, such mahogany furniture decorated with corrugated brass strips made by Russian masters is known as “a la Jacob” or “Russian Jacob”, referencing the famous Jacob family of furniture makers as a symbol of wide fame and popularity. At the same time, such furniture with its strict forms and a clearly expressed utilitarianism corresponded to the stylistic direction of the European furniture fashion of the time. Currently, the paintings on the walls are related to the European trip of the Pavlovsk owners, Pavel Petrovich and Maria Feodorovna (going under the name of Count and Countess Du Nord). Above the chest of drawers is Deer Hunting in Chantilly (France, Jean-Baptiste Le Paon, the 1780s). It depicts an episode from the royal hunt, which was arranged in honor of Pavel Petrovich and Maria Feodorovna in the country castle of the Prince of Conde, who presented the picture as a gift to his guests. Above the sofa is The Count and Countess Du Nord at the Roman Forum (Switzerland, Abraham-Louis-Rodolphe Ducros), above the secretary is A View of the Prater in Vienna (Austria, Rosa of Vienna). On the walls, there are four French gilded bronze sconces of the 19th century. The table clock Allegory of Prudence (France, Paris, workshop of P.-A. Foullet, the 1760s) stands on the escritoire (Saint Petersburg, Jonathan Ott, the 1790s). Of interest is the decor with a steel diamond face around the dial and the openwork hands made of steel beads.