Bronze Horseman - monument to Peter I
The Bronze Horseman in St. Petersburg is the most famous monument to Peter I. It is located in an open park on Senate Square and is a unique work of Russian and world culture.
Address:
St. Petersburg, Senate Square
The Bronze Horseman is surrounded by famous landmarks: the Senate and Synod buildings are located to the west, the Admiralty to the east, and St. Isaac's Cathedral to the south.
Falconet depicted the figure of Peter I in dynamics, on a rearing horse, and thereby wanted to show not a commander and a winner, but first of all a creator and legislator. We see the emperor in simple clothes, and instead of a rich saddle - an animal skin.
Only the laurel wreath crowning the head and the sword at the belt tell us about the winner and commander. The location of the monument on the top of the rock indicates the difficulties Peter overcame, and the snake is a symbol of evil forces.
The monument is unique in that it has only three support points. On the pedestal there is an inscription “to PETER the first EKATHERINE the second summer 1782”, and on the other side the same text is indicated in Latin. The weight of the Bronze Horseman is eight tons, and the height is five meters.
The initiative to create a monument to Peter I belongs to Catherine II. It was on her orders that Prince Alexander Mikhailovich Golitsyn turned to the professors of the Paris Academy of Painting and Sculpture Diderot and Voltaire, whose opinion Catherine II completely trusted. Famous masters recommended Etienne-Maurice Falconet, who at that time worked as the chief sculptor at a porcelain factory, for this work. “He has an abyss of subtle taste, intelligence and delicacy, and at the same time he is uncouth, stern, and does not believe in anything. .. He does not know self-interest,” Diderot wrote about Falcon.
Etienne-Maurice Falconet always dreamed of monumental art, and having received an offer to create an equestrian statue of colossal size, he agreed without hesitation. On September 6, 1766, he signed a contract in which the remuneration for the work was set at 200 thousand livres, which was a fairly modest amount - other masters asked for much more. The 50-year-old master came to Russia with his 17-year-old assistant Marie-Anne Collot.
Installation of the Bronze Horseman:
Falcone wanted to install the monument on a pedestal in the shape of a wave, carved from a natural piece of rock. It was very difficult to find the required block with a height of 11.2 meters, and therefore an appeal was published in the St. Petersburg News newspaper to individuals wishing to find a suitable piece of rock. And soon the peasant Semyon Vishnyakov responded, having long noticed a suitable block near the village of Lakhta and reported this to the head of the search work.
The stone, weighing about 1,600 tons and called the Thunder Stone, was delivered first on a platform to the coast of the Gulf of Finland, then by water to Senate Square. Thousands of people were involved in extracting and transporting the stone. The stone was placed on a platform that moved along two parallel gutters, into which 30 balls made of copper alloy were placed. This operation was carried out in winter from November 15, 1769, when the ground was frozen and on March 27, 1770 the stone was delivered to the shore of the Gulf of Finland. In the fall, the block was loaded onto a ship specially built by master Grigory Korchebnikov, and on September 25, 1770, crowds of people greeted the Thunder Stone on the banks of the Neva near Senate Square.
In 1778, Falconet's relationship with Catherine II finally deteriorated and, together with Marie-Anne Collot, he was forced to leave for Paris.
The installation of the Bronze Horseman was led by Fyodor Gordeev and on August 7, 1782, the grand opening of the monument took place, but its creator was never invited to this event. The military parade at the celebration was led by Prince Alexander Golitsyn, and Catherine II arrived along the Neva in a boat and climbed to the balcony of the Senate building. The Empress came out wearing a crown and purple and gave the sign to open the monument. To the beat of drums, the canvas fence fell from the monument and regiments of guardsmen marched along the Neva embankment.
Legends and Myths about the Bronze Horseman:
1. There is a legend that Peter I, being in a cheerful mood, decided to cross the Neva on his favorite horse Lisette. He exclaimed: “Everything is God’s and mine” and jumped over the river. The second time he shouted the same words and was also on the other side. And for the third time he decided to jump over the Neva, but he misspoke and said: “Everything is mine and God’s” and was immediately punished - he was petrified on Senate Square, in the place where the Bronze Horseman now stands
2. They say that Peter I, who was ill, was lying in a fever and it seemed to him that the Swedes were advancing. He jumped on his horse and wanted to rush to the Neva towards the enemy, but then a snake crawled out and wrapped itself around the horse’s legs and stopped him, preventing Peter I from jumping into the water and dying. So the Bronze Horseman stands in this place - a monument to How a snake saved Peter I
3. There are several myths and legends in which Peter I prophesies: “As long as I am in place, my city has nothing to fear.” Indeed, the Bronze Horseman remained in his place during the Patriotic War of 1812 and during the Great Patriotic War. During the siege of Leningrad, it was lined with logs and boards and bags of sand and earth were placed around it
4. Peter I points with his hand towards Sweden, and in the center of Stockholm there is a monument to Charles XII, Peter’s opponent in the Northern War, whose left hand is directed towards Russia
Interesting Facts:
1. Transportation of the stone pedestal was accompanied by difficulties and unforeseen circumstances, and emergency situations often occurred. All of Europe followed that operation, and in honor of the delivery of the Thunder Stone to Senate Square, a commemorative medal was issued with the inscription “Like daring. Genvarya, 20, 1770"
2. Falcone conceived a monument without a fence, although the fence was still installed, but has not survived to this day. Now there are people who leave inscriptions on the monument and damage the pedestal and the Bronze Horseman. It is possible that a fence will soon be installed around the Bronze Horseman
3. In 1909 and 1976, restoration of the Bronze Horseman was carried out. The latest examination, carried out using gamma rays, showed that the sculpture's frame is in good condition. Inside the monument was placed a capsule with a note about the restoration carried out and a newspaper dated September 3, 1976
Falconet depicted the figure of Peter I in dynamics, on a rearing horse, and thereby wanted to show not a commander and a winner, but first of all a creator and legislator. We see the emperor in simple clothes, and instead of a rich saddle - an animal skin.
Only the laurel wreath crowning the head and the sword at the belt tell us about the winner and commander. The location of the monument on the top of the rock indicates the difficulties Peter overcame, and the snake is a symbol of evil forces.
The monument is unique in that it has only three support points. On the pedestal there is an inscription “to PETER the first EKATHERINE the second summer 1782”, and on the other side the same text is indicated in Latin. The weight of the Bronze Horseman is eight tons, and the height is five meters.
The initiative to create a monument to Peter I belongs to Catherine II. It was on her orders that Prince Alexander Mikhailovich Golitsyn turned to the professors of the Paris Academy of Painting and Sculpture Diderot and Voltaire, whose opinion Catherine II completely trusted. Famous masters recommended Etienne-Maurice Falconet, who at that time worked as the chief sculptor at a porcelain factory, for this work. “He has an abyss of subtle taste, intelligence and delicacy, and at the same time he is uncouth, stern, and does not believe in anything. .. He does not know self-interest,” Diderot wrote about Falcon.
Etienne-Maurice Falconet always dreamed of monumental art, and having received an offer to create an equestrian statue of colossal size, he agreed without hesitation. On September 6, 1766, he signed a contract in which the remuneration for the work was set at 200 thousand livres, which was a fairly modest amount - other masters asked for much more. The 50-year-old master came to Russia with his 17-year-old assistant Marie-Anne Collot.
Installation of the Bronze Horseman:
Falcone wanted to install the monument on a pedestal in the shape of a wave, carved from a natural piece of rock. It was very difficult to find the required block with a height of 11.2 meters, and therefore an appeal was published in the St. Petersburg News newspaper to individuals wishing to find a suitable piece of rock. And soon the peasant Semyon Vishnyakov responded, having long noticed a suitable block near the village of Lakhta and reported this to the head of the search work.
The stone, weighing about 1,600 tons and called the Thunder Stone, was delivered first on a platform to the coast of the Gulf of Finland, then by water to Senate Square. Thousands of people were involved in extracting and transporting the stone. The stone was placed on a platform that moved along two parallel gutters, into which 30 balls made of copper alloy were placed. This operation was carried out in winter from November 15, 1769, when the ground was frozen and on March 27, 1770 the stone was delivered to the shore of the Gulf of Finland. In the fall, the block was loaded onto a ship specially built by master Grigory Korchebnikov, and on September 25, 1770, crowds of people greeted the Thunder Stone on the banks of the Neva near Senate Square.
In 1778, Falconet's relationship with Catherine II finally deteriorated and, together with Marie-Anne Collot, he was forced to leave for Paris.
The installation of the Bronze Horseman was led by Fyodor Gordeev and on August 7, 1782, the grand opening of the monument took place, but its creator was never invited to this event. The military parade at the celebration was led by Prince Alexander Golitsyn, and Catherine II arrived along the Neva in a boat and climbed to the balcony of the Senate building. The Empress came out wearing a crown and purple and gave the sign to open the monument. To the beat of drums, the canvas fence fell from the monument and regiments of guardsmen marched along the Neva embankment.
Legends and Myths about the Bronze Horseman:
1. There is a legend that Peter I, being in a cheerful mood, decided to cross the Neva on his favorite horse Lisette. He exclaimed: “Everything is God’s and mine” and jumped over the river. The second time he shouted the same words and was also on the other side. And for the third time he decided to jump over the Neva, but he misspoke and said: “Everything is mine and God’s” and was immediately punished - he was petrified on Senate Square, in the place where the Bronze Horseman now stands
2. They say that Peter I, who was ill, was lying in a fever and it seemed to him that the Swedes were advancing. He jumped on his horse and wanted to rush to the Neva towards the enemy, but then a snake crawled out and wrapped itself around the horse’s legs and stopped him, preventing Peter I from jumping into the water and dying. So the Bronze Horseman stands in this place - a monument to How a snake saved Peter I
3. There are several myths and legends in which Peter I prophesies: “As long as I am in place, my city has nothing to fear.” Indeed, the Bronze Horseman remained in his place during the Patriotic War of 1812 and during the Great Patriotic War. During the siege of Leningrad, it was lined with logs and boards and bags of sand and earth were placed around it
4. Peter I points with his hand towards Sweden, and in the center of Stockholm there is a monument to Charles XII, Peter’s opponent in the Northern War, whose left hand is directed towards Russia
Interesting Facts:
1. Transportation of the stone pedestal was accompanied by difficulties and unforeseen circumstances, and emergency situations often occurred. All of Europe followed that operation, and in honor of the delivery of the Thunder Stone to Senate Square, a commemorative medal was issued with the inscription “Like daring. Genvarya, 20, 1770"
2. Falcone conceived a monument without a fence, although the fence was still installed, but has not survived to this day. Now there are people who leave inscriptions on the monument and damage the pedestal and the Bronze Horseman. It is possible that a fence will soon be installed around the Bronze Horseman
3. In 1909 and 1976, restoration of the Bronze Horseman was carried out. The latest examination, carried out using gamma rays, showed that the sculpture's frame is in good condition. Inside the monument was placed a capsule with a note about the restoration carried out and a newspaper dated September 3, 1976
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Address:
St. Petersburg, Senate Square
