The Numismatic Department of the Hermitage possesses a large collection of Monuments of Freemasonry including an array of symbols of Freemasonry Lodges, including Russian ones, a wide range of objects related to Masonic rituals (buckles, slings and others), a variety of documents, seals and other items connected with Freemasonry, totalling around 1300 items.
Since the 1920s the collection has been replenished as a result of transfers from other institutions, such as the Academy of Sciences, the Museum Fund as well as through donations and acquisitions. However, the bulk of the exhibits entered the Hermitage in 1937 from the collection of the famous industrialist and collector Dmitry Burylin (1852-1924) from Ivanovo-Voznesensk.
Masonic monuments are found also in the collections of other departments of the Hermitage.
