The Catherine Palace (Russian: Ekaterininskii dvorets, Yekaterinskiy dvorets) is a Rococo palace located 30 kilometers south of St. Petersburg in Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin). It was the Russian tsars' summer home. The building was designed by Bartolomeo Bell and built between 1744 and 1757 to a design by Carlo Rossi. It has been called Russia's first true palace because it had all the usual amenities of a European-style house: a ballroom, an opera house, a library, and gardens. Catherine the Great lived in this palace from 1763 until her death in 1825. She spent most of her time here with her family and friends. Although she was crowned empress at Versailles, she returned to Russia to build a palace that would be suitable for her status as the queen of nations. This grand palace was finally completed after her death by others who took advantage of her political powerlessness after her death. Today, it is open to the public as a museum. People often wonder what life was like in this beautiful palace with its elegant rooms and decorations.