Founded in- 1877 as the Post-and-Telegraph Museum, it dealt with collecting all kinds of rarities and curiosities. Only after 1917 did the museum become a real cultural and educational institution. Its exhibits are housed in the former palace of a nobleman built in the 18th century. Among the unique exhibits of the Historical Section are…
Old photo At the Palace Bridge in spring Old photo
The huge five-domed cathedral (85 metres high) of the Smolny Nunnery is the centre of an architectural ensemble built in 1748—1764 to the design of the architect V. V. Rastrelli, an outstanding master of the baroque style. In 1832—1835 the architect V. P. Stasov completed the construction and the fittings of the cathedral.
The building is a memorial of the history of the Great October Socialist Revolution. Here, on April 4, 1917, V. I. Lenin expounded his famous April Theses. On May 31, at the Petrograd Conference of Factory Committees that took place in the palace, Vladimir Ilyich delivered a speech on the problem of workers’ control over…
The station is named after the writer N. G. Chernyshevsky, the great philosopher of the Russian Revolutionary Democrats, and is situated on the prospect bearing his name. The design of the station is unpretentious but modern. The plain interior of the entrance-hall (architects A. S. Getsky and V. P. Shuvalova) contrasts with its striking facade…
This park, the first in St. Petersburg, called the Summer Garden, was laid out in 1704. The architectural and sculptural ensemble in and around the garden is one of the most treasured memorials of Russian culture of the early 18th century. The Summer Garden contains a very old and unique collection of park sculptures. It…
The monument by the sculptor M. I. Kozldvsky represents the great general as Mars, the ancient Romans’ god of war. The basreliefs on the pedestal picturing Glory and Peace were modelled by F. G. Gordeyev. The monument was placed on the drive to Kirov bridge in 1818. The Monument to Suvorov opens the vista of…
Swan Canal (canal Swan) – Canal in St. Petersburg. Joins the River Neva Irek Sink. Swan Canal between the Summer Garden (Summer Garden Island) and the Field of Mars (1st Admiralty Island).
A. S. Pushkin lived in this house from October 1836 to the day of his death on January 29, 1837. The rooms of the museum contain many of the things that belonged to the poet — his writing-table, desk, inkstand and pen, his portraits painted by famous contemporary artists during Pushkin’s life and after his…
The plaque on the facade indicates that from March 5 to July 5, 1917, the editorial office of the Bolshevist newspaper Pravda was housed in this building. On April 4, 1917, the day after his return to Petersburg from exile, V. I. Lenin called at the editorial office. From that day right up to July…
The State Hermitage is a rich treasure house of world culture and art. It is the greatest history and’ arts museum in the RUSSIA — a museum of world significance. The collections of the museum began to accumulate as far back as the 18th century, when they were considered the personal property of the tsar’s…
This is the central square of Saint Petersburg and one of the most beautiful squares in the world. The scene of traditional festive demonstrations and rallies, the square witnessed great historical events in Russia. It was here that on Januarv 9, 1905, by order of the tsar a peaceful working people’s demonstration, which was marching…
The silhouette of the Admiralty, engraved on the medal For the Defence of Saint Petersburg, is a symbol of the hero-city, the port-city. The setting up of the Admiralty was closely connected with the foundation of the Russian Navy and took place in the early years of the construction of the city. The then shipyard…
Admiring the Bronze Horseman This famous work of the sculptor E. M. Falconet is one of the jems of world art. (The head of the rider was created by Marie-Anne CoIIot, the sculptor’s assistant, and the snake was modelled by F. G. Gordeyev, another of Falconet’s assistants). A monolithic slab for the pedestal (called Thunder…
This square, Senatskaya Ploshchad, was given the name of the Decembrists because on that memorable day, December 14, 1825, this square was the scene of the first open armed uprising of the revolutionary young noblemen, afterwards known as the Decembrists, who proclaimed the abolition of serfdom and autocracy. The architectural ensemble of the square is…
The complex of former warehouses for the storing and drying of ship-building timber, called New Holland, is a fine monument of industrial architecture of the 18th century. It was designed and built by S. I. Chevakinsky and J. B. Vallin-Delamothe in 1765—1780. The splendid monumental portal and arch are of particular interest. New Holland Island…
The exhibition of the museum is housed in an old mansion. It reflects the history of the city from the time of its foundation up to the present day. There is a special section called Socialist Saint Petersburg that contains some interesting documents and exhibits revealing the great socialist changes effected in Saint Petersburg during…
The stela stands not far from Lieutenant Schmidt Bridge (former Nikolayevsky Bridge), just opposite the place where on October 25, 1917, the revolutionary cruiser Aurora heralded the victory of the Socialist Revolution by firing a salvo. The obelisk was designed by the architect A. I. Qegello and put up in 1939.
In 1806 two column-shaped lighthouses adorned with rostrums (sculptural replicas of ships’ prows) were built on the Spit of Vasilyevsky Island. The columns were designed by the architect Thomas de Thomon. The mighty figures, seated at the foot of the columns, personify Russia’s trade routes — the Neva, the Volkhov, the Volga and the Dnieper.…
Founded in 1714, the Museum of Natural History was transferred to this building in 1727. The building of the Kunstkamera, where the museum came to be housed, was erected in 1718— 1734 by the architects G. I. Mattarnovi, G. Kiaveri and M. G. Zemtsov. In the 1740’s the structure was remodelled under the supervision of…
The museum was founded in 1709 by Peter I’s edict ordering the formation of a Model-Kdmora (Model Chamber) in the building of the Admiralty. Nowadays its collections are housed in the former Fondovaya Birzha (Stock Exchange). The Exchange building is the centre of a majestic architectural ensemble on the Strelka (Spit) of Vasilyevsky Island, created…
The exhibition of the museum, which was founded in 1899, shows the development of Russian literature beginning with the most ancient masterpiece — Slovo o Polku fgoreve (The Lay of Igor’s Host). Special sections of the exhibition are devoted to the work of A. N. Radishchev, M. Y. Lermontov, N. V. Gogol, I. S. Turgenev,…