1772: Purchase of Baron Pierre Crozat's collection

In 1772 the notable picture gallery of Antoine Crozat, Baron de Thiers, who had died two years earlier, was acquired. The nucleus of the collection was put together by Baron's uncle, Pierre Crozat, a banker and connoisseur closely connected with the art world. Negotiations with the heirs of Baron de Thiers were conducted through the philosopher Denis Diderot and concluded with the acquisition of the whole of the splendid collection. It became one of the most valuable acquisitions in the history of the Hermitage. The collection included such masterpieces as Raphael's Holy Family, Giorgione's Judith, a Danaë by Titian, Danaë and The Holy Family by Rembrandt and a Pieta by Paolo Veronese. Two works by Pieter Paul Rubens were also acquired; these are Bacchus and Portrait of a Lady-in-Waiting to the Infanta Isabella. Anthony van Dyck was represented by six portraits, including a self portrait. Along with paintings from the Italian, Flemish, Dutch and Netherlandish schools the collection was rich in works by French artists of the 17th and 18th centuries such as Louis Le Nain, Nicolas Poussin, Pierre Mignard, Nicolas de Largillièrre, Antoine Watteau (Actors of the Comédie Française), Nicolas Lancret and Jean Baptiste Siméon Chardin (The Laundress).

Judith
Giorgione
Larger view

Bacchus
Rubens, Pieter Paul
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Laundress
Chardin, Jean-Simeon
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Holy Family (Madonna with Beardless Joseph)
Raphaello Santi
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