Preserved in the Hermitage are more than one hundred and forty thousand items pertaining to the culture and art of the various peoples of the East. This Eastern department was set up in 1920 upon the initiative of the distinguished Soviet scholar and orientalist J. Orbeli.
At the present time the Soviet East is represented in two exhibitions- “The Art and Culture of the Peoples of Central Asia: 4,000 B.C.-early 20th century ‘, and “The Art and Culture of the Peoples of the Caucasus: 1,100 B.C.- 19th century1, situated on the ground floor of the Winter Palace.
The art of the non-Soviet East is presented in the following exhibitions:
Ground floor
The Art and Culture of Egypt: 4,000 B.C.- 6th century A.D.
The Art and Culture of Babylon, Assyria and Neighbouring Countries: 4,000 B.C. -3rd century A.D.
Second floor
The Art and Culture of Byzantium: 5th-15th centuries.
The Art and Culture of the Countries of the Near and Middle East: 3rd – 19th centuries.
The Art and Culture of India: 17th -20th centuries.
The Art and Culture of China: 2,000 B.C. -20th century.
The Art and Culture of Mongolia: 100 B.C. – 19th century.
The Art and Culture of Japan: 17th -20th centuries.
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