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# Zertsalo displaying decrees of Peter the Great in Russian Empire offices
- URL: https://theparnassian.com/en/etot-interesnyi-predmet-v-tsentre-stola-byl-vo-vsekh-gosudarstvennykh-uchrezhdeniiakh-rossiiskoi-imperii/
- Published: 2019-07-06T18:42:32.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-02T18:57:39.000Z
- Author: Alexandr Radayev
- Tags: Heritage, Society

This curious object at the centre of the table was to be found in every government office of the Russian Empire. It is the zertsalo ("mirror"), a special prism of wood or metal, surmounted by the double-headed imperial eagle, on which were displayed the decrees of Peter I addressed to officials and assessors. The zertsalo stood in many official premises right up to the twentieth century as a reminder to observe the interests of the state and to do one's duty