The original architectural details of Gottesman Hall were well suited to the message and layout of the exhibition. The floor of the gallery contained a repetitive design element of a globe (the world) with an underlay mimicking the points of a compass. The layout of the gallery consisted of a large core suitable for the principal portions of the exhibition as well as smaller alcoves, perfect for the secondary portions. Materials pertaining to imperial Russia were placed in the core of the gallery. Items related to highlighted world cultural zones with which imperial Russia interacted – Asia, Northern and Central Europe, and the Islamic empires – were displayed on the peripheries of the gallery, oriented to roughly correspond to their actual geographical location relative to Russia – East, North, and South.

Graphic panels or freestanding pylons bearing text and used to introduce each section included schematic maps of Russia in relation to the world of the period, and provided further orientation to the historical and geographical issues in each section. The pylons also contained timelines, which set events in Russian history in a global context.