Built in the middle of the 19th century, this former governor’s palace has seen a lot of interesting moments since then. In particular, the famous writer Alexandre Dumas, who was traveling in Russia at the time, was given a banquet here in 1858. Nicholas II, the last Russian emperor, and his spouse stayed here during his visit to the All-Russia Industrial and Art Exhibition in 1896. Since 1992, the former governor’s palace has served as the main building of the Nizhny Novgorod State Art Museum. It is one of Russia’s most important regional museums, with a rich collection of Russian art.

Here you can see the works of generational painters, from Viktor Vasnetsov to Nicholas Roerich, admire the giant Russian Venus by Boris Kustodiev painted on the back of his family portrait «On the Terrace». One of the signature works of the museum, the canvas is displayed so that both paintings can be seen.