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Cats in the Hermitage 

At the parking lot near the Hermitage in St. Petersburg there is an unusual road sign. It says Cats crossing. It was introduced to protect the cats living on the territory. The Hermitage cats have become an attraction of their own and a special attraction for young visitors. The museum director keeps saying that the cats interest journalists even more than the exhibits themselves!

He is right. Even the ravens of the Tower of London could envy the fame of the Hermitage cats. Firstly, each one has a passport and a personal plate and a collar. Secondly, they undergo regular vet check-ups. Their meals are cooked in a special kitchen in the basement. Finally, they are welcomed on the annual Cats’ Day celebrated in May and are honorable guests there.

Kindly called the hermics, the cats feel at home inside the museum. They are free to go wherever they like, within some reasonable limits of course. In fact, there are classes inside the animal community. The most privileged are allowed into the halls and stairs, others live in the basement and in the yard. The tradition of cats’ privileges goes back to the 18th century. The first cats brought to the Winter Palace were divided into indoor and outdoor ones.

At that time, the Winter Palace was occupied by rats. The hungry creatures were destroying the royal food stores and belongings. By the order of Empress Elizabeth I, 30 cats were brought from Kazan to help the situation. They were carefully selected among the many cats as the strongest and the quickest rat-hunters. In time, the children of the Kazan cats became the pets of the royal family.

The hardest time for cats in the Hermitage was the Siege of Leningrad* during World War II. There were almost none of them left in the city. The rats multiplied enormously and a cat became worth its weight in gold. The authorities used the old method and ordered four carriages of cats from Yaroslavl. Five thousand male hunters arrived to save the museum. And they succeeded in their mission!

Now there are about 60 cats in the museum and each of them has a name. The names come from painters, cities and states, and there is a legend about one of them, Vaska, the Lawyer. This cat was the hero of the battles against the rats in the 1960s. His second name came from the Law Department that Vaska enjoyed visiting.

Having lost interest in law, the cat settled at the front entrance to the Hermitage. There he played a more important role as a porter and got more food. Every morning half an hour before opening, he called the guards to the doors with a loud mew. When the first visitors entered the hall, he would lay by the stairs to get more attention.

Among the visitors there were many volunteers to help take care of the cats. Today the museum covers the cats’ living expenses. Also, there are sponsors eager to take part. On Cats’ Day visitors are allowed into the basement to watch the cats’ everyday life. Some cats are available for adoption and people are happy to take them home as a symbol of the Hermitage.

*The Siege of Leningrad — блокада Ленинграда.