Published to accompany the exhibition of the same name held at the National Museum of Scotland, July 13-Oct. 21, 2012.

At head of title: National Museums Scotland.

"Ownership of the exhibits . The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg"--Colophon.

"The year 2012 is the 250th anniversary of the year Catherine ascended to the throne. ... The 600 items in the exhibition enable us to explore and understand Catherine's personal and family life, her links with intellectuals of the day, the spectacular victories of her military commanders, and her outstanding achievements as a builder, patron and collector. For many people, this exhibition will offer a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see dozens of the finest items produced by the Imperial Porcelain Factory, the Tula Armouries and other Russian factories and workshops. Catherine's enormous collection of over 3000 paintings and 10,000 engraved gemstones is also well represented in the exhibition, with splendid paintings and some of her very finest cameos and intaglios."--Page ix.

Includes bibliographical references.