Mikhail Butin, the local silver baron, built himself this impressive crenellated palace, furnished with what were then claimed to be the world’s largest mirrors. He’d bought them at the 1878 World Fair in Paris and managed to ship them unscathed all the way to Nerchinsk via the China Sea and up the Amur River. These four mammoth mirrors form the centrepiece of the collection, along with a delightful pair of hobbit-style chairs crafted from polished tangles of birch roots.
Three-quarters of the palace, including the grand, triple-arched gateway (demolished in 1970), still stands in ruins.