Terem Palace, Royal palace in Kremlin, Moscow, Russia
Terem Palace is a five-story building in the Moscow Kremlin, its lower and middle walls painted salmon-pink and white with rows of rectangular windows framed by white trim. Above rises a steep pyramidal roof of greyish-brown material topped by a small structure with a slender finial. To the right is a green-domed section with arched windows, and a lower range with a green roof extends across the foreground. Golden onion domes flank the palace on both sides.
The palace was built in 1635 under Michael I, the first Romanov tsar, while incorporating sections from earlier structures dating to Vasily III and Ivan IV. This combination of older and newer construction methods shaped how the building evolved over time.
The name comes from the Greek word teremnon, meaning dwelling. The palace is closed to the public as part of the Russian president's residence, so its brick tracery and coloured tiles are seen only from the outside, between the golden onion domes that flank it.
The palace is not open to the public: it belongs to the official residence of the President of Russia. It can only be seen from the outside, within the Moscow Kremlin, between the golden onion domes of the surrounding cathedrals. Visitors should plan to view it from Cathedral Square rather than expect interior access.
The building introduced the enfilade room arrangement to Russian architecture, where connected chambers form a sequence of increasingly private royal apartments. This layout concept influenced how other palace buildings were later designed.
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