Summer Garden description and photo - Russia - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg
Rating: 8,6/10 (6895 votes) 
Summer Garden description and photos - Russia - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photos and a map showing the nearest significant objects. Photo and descriptionOne of the most popular places for guests of the northern Russian capital is the Summer Garden. Residents of the city also like to spend time on its ancient alleys, under the crowns of trees, admiring its fountains and sculptures. The garden is already several hundred years old: it was founded at the beginning of the 18th century by the decree of the first Russian emperor. The garden was supposed to serve as one of the residences of Peter I . Initially, the garden was laid out on a regular basis (that is, geometrically correct). The location of its alleys, pavilions, fountains, sculptures obeyed the law of symmetry. Currently, many objects of the garden of Peter's times have been lost, but still a considerable part of them have survived. Some of the objects have been restored. The garden was laidThe garden was laid in the first years of the 18th century . The project was developed by Ivan Ugryumov . It was he who established the boundaries of the garden, created its layout. Under the leadership of Ugryumov, the territory selected for the garden was drained. It should be noted that initially it was unsuitable for planting trees, so the work on its drainage was of great importance. ponds were created, channels were built. Imported soil was used to create solid soil (it was brought from various places in very large quantities). trees were planted and fountains erected. A harbor was built in the garden. It was necessary so that the garden could be approached by small boats. This harbor does not currently exist. Soon the garden became the favorite place of the emperor for holding balls, and magnificent fireworks were arranged here. It was possible to get here only at the invitation of the emperor. In the second decade of the 18th century, the garden was divided by a canal into two almost equal halves. At the same time the imperial residence was built. Many other objects of the famous garden have appeared - for example, the Large greenhouse . Marble sculptures were commissioned by Italian masters: these works were to be among the main decorations of the garden. Around the same time period, a steam engine was used to supply the fountains with water (previously horse-drawn ones were used for this purpose). It is known that the garden had a magnificent poultry house , some of the birds were in cages, while others flew freely between the trees. Four-legged animals were also kept in the garden. An important event in the history of the garden was the arrival of the architect Jean-Baptiste Alexander Leblon to the northern Russian capital. He was considered one of the greatest European specialists in the creation of regular gardens. He made numerous changes to the composition of the Summer Garden. Much to decorate the famous garden was done by the famous Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli (this was already in the 30s of the XVIII century). Garden in the second half of the 18th century When Elizaveta Petrovna the garden became available to the general public - but only in the days when the empress was not in the city. At first, the garden was open on Sundays and holidays, after a while it began to be opened on Thursdays. However, not everyone was allowed into the garden, but only those who were neatly dressed. Until the 60s of the 18th century, the garden was located directly on the Neva bank, but then part of the river bed was filled up. In the second half of the 70s, a storm happened in the city, during which a terrible flood began. Garden fountains were destroyed, and one of the pavilions was also damaged. It was decided not to restore the fountains: their reconstruction would have cost a fairly large amount, while they did not correspond to fashion trends in the field of garden art. The pavilion was restored (more precisely, rebuilt) only at the beginning of the 19th century. In the 70s of the 18th century, the Neva part of the garden fence was created (that is, the one that is located on the Neva side). The fact is that because of the restoration work that took place on the stone embankment, the garden on this side was not fenced at all for some time. The new fence has become a real work of art. Nowadays, experts argue about who exactly was the author of her project: the documents contain the names of several architects, both Russian and foreign. The fence was forged by Tula blacksmiths . Its thirty-six pillars, as well as urns and vases, were made of granite; one hundred and forty-four bricklayers worked on the creation of these parts of the fence. In the first half of the 1880s, the fence was completed. From the 19th century to the present In the 19th century, several new structures appeared in the garden. In the late 1930s, one of the foreign monarchs presented the Russian emperor with a magnificent stone vase , which became one of the main decorations of the garden. In the middle of the century, a monument was erected on its territory depicting the fabulist Ivan Krylov . The granite pedestal is decorated with compositions that are in fact illustrations for the most famous Krylov fables. In the 60s of the 19th century, the Neva part of the fence underwent major changes: a chapel was built into it, which was erected in memory of the emperor's salvation from a terrorist who attempted on his life. The assassination attempt took place in the garden, while the emperor was walking: a man standing at the garden fence shot at the king, but missed (someone managed to hit the terrorist on the hand). In the post-revolutionary period, the chapel was closed, and later, in the 30s of the 20th century, it was dismantled. In the 40s, restoration work was carried out in the garden. In the 21st century, the garden became part of the Russian Museum , becoming one of its branches. Around the same period of time, large-scale restoration work was carried out in the garden. The sculptures and the fence were restored, several fountains were recreated, one of the gates was restored, more than a hundred dry and sick trees were cut down, several thousand new ones were planted ... And this is not a complete list of the work carried out. lasting about two and a half years. Sculpture and fountains Statues and fountains are important decorative elements of the garden. - Like the rest of the garden statues, the Minerva sculpture has been repeatedly restored. During the 20th century alone, restorers have worked with it six times. The Carrara marble from which it was made was destroyed for natural reasons: the sculpture has been in the open air for several centuries and almost all this time. But not only time and weather conditions had a devastating effect on the statue: unfortunately, one cannot fail to mention here the role of vandals, who regularly damage garden sculptures. So, at the beginning of the XXI century, another act of vandalism was committed: "Minerva" lost her spear, while her hand was damaged. The statue was restored, but after that it was not returned to its original place, but replaced with a carefully made copy. The original is in the Mikhailovsky Castle. - Fate turned out to be much more favorable to the sculpture called "Youth" : for three centuries it was practically not damaged. However, in the 20th century, it was still sent for restoration seven times (although serious restoration work was not required). But the beginning of the XXI century turned out to be fatal for the statue: during a hurricane wind, the trunk of a large tree collapsed on it, as a result of which both of her hands were very badly damaged. There was a need for a serious restoration. After the completion of the work, the statue was returned to its place. A few years later, it was nevertheless replaced with a copy, and the original was placed in the Mikhailovsky Castle. - In the 21st century, a fountain named Tsaritsyn was recreated. It was one of eight water cannons recovered a few years ago. Archaeological data were used to recreate them. It is known that in the 18th century a water cannon was located on the main alley. It was named after the second wife of the first Russian emperor. She loved to meet guests near this fountain. - The fountain, decorated with two-headed eagles, was named "Coat of arms" . It is known that in the 20s of the 18th century it was also decorated with "overseas shells". Currently, the fountain has been recreated. - "Pyramid" is the name of the 18th century fountain preserved in historical documents, was received by him for his form. According to the aforementioned documents, this fountain was once square, but its shape was changed by the order of the empress. The fountain has not survived to this day, but during the restoration work at the beginning of the XXI century it was restored to its original form. - The multi-jet fountain called "Crown" was, according to the memoirs of contemporaries, perhaps the most beautiful of all the fountains of the famous garden. Its numerous jets formed a kind of crown, which is why it got its name. Today, visitors to the garden can admire this fountain, recreated several years ago. - One cannot but tell about Lacoste - a fountain named after the court jester. It is known that this garden object was a kind of addition to another fountain dedicated to the little dog of the Empress. Although archaeological excavations made it possible to accurately determine the place where the "jester's fountain" was located, this object was still not restored. It was decided to make it a museum. In other words, several of its fragments and drainages are currently covered by a large glass dome, through which they can be viewed in detail. Notes
                          We also recommend reading Gaono gatve street description and photos - Lithuania: Vilnius Topic: Summer Garden description and photo - Russia - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg. |
