Among the favourite pictures in my private collection is the one being posted today. Again a picture taken from rather short distance thus excellent when it comes to details. Regrettably I've not yet been able to identify when and at what occassion this photograph was taken.
Alongside the yacht one of the yacht's steam launches is waiting at the lower platform of the accommodation ladder. His Imperial Majesty Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias is descending from the accommodation ladder and boarding the launch. The Admiral of the Baltic Fleet immediately following the Emperor.
The watertight door to main deck is opened and court members can be seen in the door opening. When stepping into the yacht through this starboard watertight door and when then turning left one would enter the quarterdeck with the imperial suites. The first three windows left from the watertight door are belonging to the three room suite of Empress Aleksandra; the next three windows are the three room suite of Emperor Nicholas II. Straight ahead from the starboard watertight door was the ship's chapel. Turning right one would walk along the glass facaded engine room.
In all cases the Imperial Family and high rank visitors only boarded and disembarked the yacht from the starboard side; in the maritime world the starboard side is the senior side of a ship and the private cabins to the highest ranked officers (and in the case of Standart thus also the suites of the Emperor and Empress) are on starboard side. Note the second row of windows that can be seen now that the outside rectangular porthole window shutters are opened; the windows were nickel plated and opened to the inside. Each of these windows (behind each porthole are two windows) costed in 1896 the for that time enormous amount of 900 Danish kronor, which in today's money is approximately EUR 8,000 or well over USD 10,000. Standart had in total 84 of these nickel plated windows hence almost one million dollars only for the windows on the main deck! If some of you are not yet convinced that this was the most luxurious yacht ever built I will come later on with some more stunning and remarkable details.
Alongside the yacht one of the yacht's steam launches is waiting at the lower platform of the accommodation ladder. His Imperial Majesty Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias is descending from the accommodation ladder and boarding the launch. The Admiral of the Baltic Fleet immediately following the Emperor.
The watertight door to main deck is opened and court members can be seen in the door opening. When stepping into the yacht through this starboard watertight door and when then turning left one would enter the quarterdeck with the imperial suites. The first three windows left from the watertight door are belonging to the three room suite of Empress Aleksandra; the next three windows are the three room suite of Emperor Nicholas II. Straight ahead from the starboard watertight door was the ship's chapel. Turning right one would walk along the glass facaded engine room.
In all cases the Imperial Family and high rank visitors only boarded and disembarked the yacht from the starboard side; in the maritime world the starboard side is the senior side of a ship and the private cabins to the highest ranked officers (and in the case of Standart thus also the suites of the Emperor and Empress) are on starboard side. Note the second row of windows that can be seen now that the outside rectangular porthole window shutters are opened; the windows were nickel plated and opened to the inside. Each of these windows (behind each porthole are two windows) costed in 1896 the for that time enormous amount of 900 Danish kronor, which in today's money is approximately EUR 8,000 or well over USD 10,000. Standart had in total 84 of these nickel plated windows hence almost one million dollars only for the windows on the main deck! If some of you are not yet convinced that this was the most luxurious yacht ever built I will come later on with some more stunning and remarkable details.
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