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Rastrelli, the son of a Russified Italian sculptor, had come to St. Petersburg in 1716 with his father, who had been invited to enter the service of the Russian court. By mid-century, the younger Rastrelli already enjoyed a well-deserved reputation of his own. In 1754 he was entrusted by Empress Elizabeth with the task of creating a new imperial palace on the site of the winter residences of the Russian monarchs. The main edifice was complete by 1759, but work continued on the façades and interiors, ending, ending three years later, around the time of the empress's death. The building was designed in the exceptionally opulent and grand style known as Elizabethan Baroque.
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