25 тестов на базе материалов ФИПИ. Английский язык, ОГЭ. 2024

After the construction of the Winter Palace, the cats settled down in the new building too. The founder of the Hermitage, Empress Catherine II gave the cats the status of «gallery guards’.

Cats in the Hermitage existed for a long time, during the war with Napoleon, and after the revolution, under the Soviet regime. In 1941, when the Great Patriotic War began, the works of art were evacuated to the Urals, in Sverdlovsk.

After the war, two cars brought new cats to the Hermitage. The rats, that had invaded the building during the war, stepped back.

However, in the 1960s it was decided that the cats were not needed any more. Employees of the museum caught the cats and took them away. But, soon after, rats invaded the building. Since then, the museum has never got rid of its cats.

Today, about seventy cats live in the Hermitage to protect it from mice and rats. Each cat has its own passport and a veterinary card. They live comfortably in the basement. The place where they live is always warm and dry, and all the rooms of the basement are equipped with small holes, to let the cats move freely inside and outside the building.

The Hermitage employees regularly buy food for the cats. They try to make their meals healthy and diverse. Each cat has its own bowl, tray and basket to sleep. In summer, the cats are more often outside on the lawns and courtyards than in their basement.

To control the number of cats in the Hermitage, employees sometimes give away their cats to residents of the city.

The new owner has to present their passport and leave their contact details. The adopted animals are accompanied by a certificate from the Hermitage.

13. According to its director, the Hermitage is the only museum in Russia where cats are kept officially.

1) True 2) False 3) Not stated

Ответ: _______

14. During the reign of Empress Catherine II, the cats received official status.

1) True 2) False 3) Not stated

Ответ: _______

15.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Hermitage cats were taken to Sverdlovsk to guard the works of art.

1) True 2) False 3) Not stated

Ответ: _______

16. Nowadays all the cats are settled in the attic of the Hermitage.

1) True 2) False 3) Not stated

Ответ: _______

17. The Hermitage cats are taken good care of.

1) True 2) False 3) Not stated

Ответ: _______

18. The cats are not allowed to leave the building of the museum.