Hermitage affiliate opens in Amsterdam

The opening ceremony of an affiliated museum of the Hermitage, Russia's largest art museum, will take place today in Amsterdam. Temporary exhibitions from the Hermitage's rich collection will be shown in the Amstelhof building, which was restored especially for this purpose.

The first exhibition, "Greek Gold," opens today and contains jewels from the 6-11th centuries BCE, which were found during excavations in the Russian Black Sea regions. Visitors will also see vases, silver bowls and glasses that were used by ancient Greeks. The collection, which will be in Amsterdam for several months, is a pride of the Hermitage and is stored in a special room.

The opening ceremony of the affiliate museum in the Netherlands will be attended by Russian Minister of Culture Mikhail Shvydkoi.

The Hermitage has already opened affiliates in London and Las Vegas.