P The monument to Peter I ("The Bronze Horseman") is located in the heart of St. Petersburg - on Senate Square.
The location of the monument to Peter I was not chosen by chance. Nearby are the Admiralty founded by the emperor and the building of the main legislative body Tsarist Russia- Senate. Peter I points towards Sweden, and stands in the center (the main opponent of Peter I in the Northern War), forefinger which points in the direction of Russia...

In 1710, on the site of the current Bronze Horseman, in the premises of the “drafting shed,” the very first wooden St. Isaac’s Church was located.

Catherine II insisted on placing the monument in the center of Senate Square. The author of the sculpture, Etienne-Maurice Falconet, did his own thing by installing the “Bronze Horseman” closer to the Neva.

Falconet was invited to St. Petersburg by Prince Golitsyn. Professors of the Paris Academy of Painting Diderot and Voltaire, whose taste Catherine II trusted, advised to turn to this master.
Falcone was already fifty years old. He worked at a porcelain factory, but dreamed of great and monumental art. When an invitation was received to erect a monument in Russia, Falcone, without hesitation, signed the contract on September 6, 1766. Its conditions determined: the monument to Peter should consist of “mainly an equestrian statue of colossal size.” The sculptor was offered a rather modest fee (200 thousand livres), other masters asked twice as much.

Falconet arrived in St. Petersburg with his seventeen-year-old assistant Marie-Anne Collot. Most likely, she also helped him in bed, but history is silent about this...
The vision of the monument to Peter I by the author of the sculpture was strikingly different from the desire of the empress and the majority of the Russian nobility. Catherine II expected to see Peter I with a rod or scepter in his hand, sitting on a horse like a Roman emperor. State Councilor Shtelin saw the figure of Peter surrounded by allegories of Prudence, Diligence, Justice and Victory. I. I. Betskoy, who supervised the construction of the monument, imagined it as a full-length figure, holding a commander’s staff in his hand.

Falconet was advised to direct the emperor's right eye to the Admiralty, and his left to the building of the Twelve Colleges. Diderot, who visited St. Petersburg in 1773, conceived a monument in the form of a fountain decorated with allegorical figures.

Falcone had something completely different in mind. He turned out to be stubborn and persistent. The sculptor wrote:
“I will limit myself only to the statue of this hero, whom I do not interpret either as a great commander or as a winner, although he, of course, was both. The personality of the creator, legislator, benefactor of his country is much higher, and this is what needs to be shown people. My king does not hold any rod, he extends his beneficent right hand over the country he travels around. He rises to the top of the rock that serves as his pedestal - this is the emblem of the difficulties he has conquered."

Defending the right to his opinion regarding the appearance of the monument, Falcone wrote to I. I. Betsky:

“Could you imagine that the sculptor chosen to create such a significant monument would be deprived of the ability to think and that the movements of his hands would be controlled by someone else’s head, and not his own?”

Disputes also arose around the clothes of Peter I. The sculptor wrote to Diderot:

“You know that I will not dress him in Roman style, just as I would not dress Julius Caesar or Scipio in Russian.”

Falcone worked on a life-size model of the monument for three years. Work on “The Bronze Horseman” was carried out on the site of the former temporary Winter Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna.
In 1769, passersby could watch here as a guards officer took off on a horse onto a wooden platform and reared it. This went on for several hours a day. Falcone sat at the window in front of the platform and carefully sketched what he saw. The horses for work on the monument were taken from the imperial stables: the horses Brilliant and Caprice. The sculptor chose the Russian “Oryol” breed for the monument.

Falconet's student Marie-Anne Collot sculpted the head of the Bronze Horseman. The sculptor himself took on this work three times, but each time Catherine II advised to remake the model. Marie herself proposed her sketch, which was accepted by the empress. For her work, the girl was accepted as a member of the Russian Academy of Arts, Catherine II assigned her a lifelong pension of 10,000 livres.

The snake under the horse’s foot was sculpted by the Russian sculptor F. G. Gordeev.

Preparing the life-size plaster model of the monument took twelve years; it was ready by 1778. The model was open for public viewing in the workshop on the corner of Brick Lane and Bolshaya Morskaya Street. Various opinions were expressed. The Chief Prosecutor of the Synod resolutely did not accept the project. Diderot was pleased with what he saw. Catherine II turned out to be indifferent to the model of the monument - she did not like Falcone’s arbitrariness in choosing the appearance of the monument.

On the left in the photo is a bust of Falconet Marie-Anne Collot 1773.

For a long time, no one wanted to take on the task of casting the statue. Foreign craftsmen demanded too much money, and local craftsmen were frightened by its size and complexity of work. According to the sculptor's calculations, in order to maintain the balance of the monument, the front walls of the monument had to be made very thin - no more than a centimeter. Even a specially invited foundry worker from France refused such work. He called Falcone crazy and said that there was no similar example castings that it will fail.

Finally, a foundry worker was found - cannon master Emelyan Khailov. Together with him, Falcone selected the alloy and made samples. In three years, the sculptor mastered casting to perfection. They began casting the Bronze Horseman in 1774.

The technology was very complex. The thickness of the front walls had to be less than the thickness of the rear ones. At the same time, the back part became heavier, which gave stability to the statue, which rested on only two fulcrum points (the snake is not a fulcrum, more on that below).

Filling alone, which began on August 25, 1775, did not solve the problem. Khailov was entrusted with her supervision. 1,350 pounds of bronze were prepared, and when all of it, molten, flowed into the mold, the mold cracked and the metal poured onto the floor. A fire started. Falcone ran out of the workshop in horror, the workers ran after him, and only Khailov remained in place. Risking his life, he wrapped the mold in his homespun and coated it with clay, picked up the spilled bronze and poured it back into the mold. The monument was saved, and the errors that arose due to the accident were later corrected when polishing the statue.

The St. Petersburg Gazette wrote about these events:

“The casting was successful except in places about two feet by two at the top. This regrettable failure occurred through an incident that was not at all foreseeable, and therefore impossible to prevent. The above-mentioned incident seemed so terrible that they were afraid that the entire building would go up in flames, but, Therefore, the whole business would not have failed. Khailov remained motionless and carried the molten metal into the mold, without losing his courage in the least in the face of the danger to his life. Touched by such courage, Falconet, at the end of the matter, rushed to him and kissed him with all his heart and gave him a gift from himself money."

However, as a result of the accident, numerous large defects (underfilling, adhesions) were formed in the horse’s head and the figure of the rider above the waist.

A bold plan was developed to save the statue. It was decided to cut off the defective part of the statue and refill it, building a new form directly onto the surviving parts of the monument. Using pieces of plaster mold, a wax model of the top of the casting was obtained, which was a continuation of the wall of the previously cast part of the statue.

The second filling was carried out in November 1777, and it was a complete success. In memory of this unique operation, on one of the folds of Peter I’s cloak, the sculptor left the inscription “Modeled and cast by Etienne Falconet, Parisian 1778.” Not a word about Khailov.

According to the sculptor’s plan, the base of the monument is a natural rock in the shape of a wave. The shape of the wave serves as a reminder that it was Peter I who led Russia to the sea. The Academy of Arts began searching for the monolith stone when the model of the monument was not yet ready. A stone was needed whose height would be 11.2 meters.

The granite monolith was found in the Lakhta region, twelve miles from St. Petersburg.

Once upon a time, according to local legends, lightning struck the rock, forming a crack in it. Among the locals, the rock was called "Thunder Stone".

That’s what they later began to call the piece of rock when they installed it on the banks of the Neva for famous monument. There were rumors that in the old days there was a temple on it. And sacrifices were made.

The initial weight of the monolith is about 2000 tons. Catherine II announced a reward of 7,000 rubles to the one who comes up with the most effective way to deliver the rock to Senate Square. From many projects, the method proposed by a certain Carbury was chosen. There were rumors that he had bought this project from some Russian merchant.

A clearing was cut from the location of the stone to the shore of the bay and the soil was strengthened. The rock was freed from excess layers, and it immediately became lighter by 600 tons. The thunder-stone was hoisted with levers onto a wooden platform resting on copper balls. These balls moved on grooved wooden rails lined with copper. The clearing was winding. Work on transporting the rock continued in both cold and hot weather. Hundreds of people worked. Many St. Petersburg residents came to watch this action. Some of the observers collected fragments of stone and used them to make cane knobs or cufflinks. In honor of the extraordinary transport operation, Catherine II ordered the minting of a medal with the inscription “Like daring. January 20, 1770.”

The poet Vasily Rubin wrote in the same year:
The Russian Mountain, not made by hands here, Hearing the voice of God from the lips of Catherine, Came to the city of Petrov through the Neva abyss. And she fell under the feet of the Great Peter.

By the time the monument to Peter I was erected, the relationship between the sculptor and the imperial court had completely deteriorated. It got to the point that Falcone was credited with only a technical attitude towards the monument.

Portrait of Marie-Anne Collot

The offended master did not wait for the opening of the monument; in September 1778, together with Marie-Anne Collot, he left for Paris.

And the monument, weighing about 10 tons, still had to be erected...

The installation of the Bronze Horseman on the pedestal was supervised by the architect F. G. Gordeev.

The grand opening of the monument to Peter I took place on August 7, 1782 (old style). The sculpture was hidden from the eyes of observers by a canvas fence depicting mountain landscapes.

It had been raining since the morning, but it did not stop a significant number of people from gathering on Senate Square. By noon the clouds had cleared. The guards entered the square. The military parade was led by Prince A. M. Golitsyn. At four o'clock, Empress Catherine II herself arrived on the boat. She climbed onto the balcony of the Senate building in a crown and purple and gave a sign for the opening of the monument. The fence fell, and to the beat of drums the regiments moved along the Neva embankment.

By order of Catherine II, the following is inscribed on the pedestal: “Catherine II to Peter I.” Thus, the Empress emphasized her commitment to Peter's reforms. Immediately after the appearance of the Bronze Horseman on Senate Square, the square was named Petrovskaya.

A. S. Pushkin called the sculpture “The Bronze Horseman” in his poem of the same name. This expression has become so popular that it has become almost official. And the monument to Peter I itself became one of the symbols of St. Petersburg.
The weight of the "Bronze Horseman" is 8 tons, the height is more than 5 meters.

Neither the wind nor the terrible floods could defeat the monument.

Legends

One evening, Pavel, accompanied by his friend Prince Kurakin, walked through the streets of St. Petersburg. Suddenly a man appeared ahead, wrapped in a wide cloak. It seemed that he was waiting for the travelers and, when they approached, he walked next to them. Pavel shuddered and turned to Kurakin: “Someone is walking next to us.” However, he did not see anyone and tried to convince the Grand Duke of this. Suddenly the ghost spoke: “Paul! Poor Pavel! I am the one who takes part in you.” Then the ghost walked ahead of the travelers, as if leading them along. Approaching the middle of the square, he indicated the place for the future monument. “Goodbye, Pavel,” said the ghost, “you will see me here again.” And when, leaving, he raised his hat, Pavel saw Peter’s face with horror.

The legend is believed to date back to the memoirs of Baroness von Oberkirch, who details the circumstances under which Paul himself publicly told the story. Bearing in mind the high reliability of the memoirs, based on many years of diary entries, and the friendship between the Baroness and Maria Feodorovna, Paul’s wife, most likely the source of the legend is indeed the future sovereign himself...

There is another legend. During the War of 1812, when the threat of Napoleonic invasion was real, Alexander I decided to transport the monument to Peter to Vologda. A certain captain Baturin had a strange dream: as if the Bronze Horseman was moving off the pedestal and galloping towards Kamenny Island, where Emperor Alexander I was at that time. “Young man, what have you brought my Russia to?” Peter tells him. “But until then, as long as I stand in my place, my city has nothing to fear." Then the horseman, announcing the city with a “heavy ringing gallop,” returned to Senate Square. According to legend, the dream of the unknown captain was brought to the attention of the emperor, as a result of which the statue of Peter the Great remained in St. Petersburg.
As you know, the boot of a Napoleonic soldier, like a fascist one, did not touch the St. Petersburg pavements.

The famous mystic and spirit seer of the 20th century, Daniil Andreev, in “The Rose of the World,” described one of the hellish worlds. There he reports that in infernal Petersburg, the torch in the hand of the Bronze Horseman is the only source of light, while Peter is sitting not on a horse, but on a terrible dragon...

During the siege of Leningrad, the Bronze Horseman was covered with bags of earth and sand, lined with logs and boards.

When after the war the monument was freed from boards and bags, the Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union appeared on Peter’s chest. Someone drew it with chalk...

Restorations of the monument took place in 1909 and 1976. During the last of them, the sculpture was studied using gamma rays. To do this, the space around the monument was fenced off with sandbags and concrete blocks. The cobalt gun was controlled from a nearby bus. Thanks to this research, it turned out that the frame of the monument can serve for many years to come. Inside the figure was a capsule with a note about the restoration and its participants, a newspaper dated September 3, 1976.

Etienne-Maurice Falconet conceived The Bronze Horseman without a fence. But it was still created and has not survived to this day. “Thanks to” the vandals who left their autographs on the thunder stone and the sculpture itself, the idea of ​​restoring the fence was realized.

The snake that the horse tramples and the tail serve only to separate the air currents and reduce the windage of the monument.

2. Peter’s pupils are made in the shape of hearts. Peter looks at the city with loving eyes. So Falcone conveyed to his descendants the news of Peter’s love for his brainchild - St. Petersburg.

3. Thanks to Pushkin and his poem, the monument is called “Copper”, but it is not made of copper, but of bronze (even though bronze consists mostly of copper).

4. The monument was depicted on the money of Yudenich, who went to Petrograd, but did not reach it.

The monument is covered in myths and legends. It is also in foreign collections. This is how the Japanese imagined it.

Illustration from the 11th scroll "Kankai Ibun". The monument was drawn by a Japanese artist from the words of sailors)))

Previously, submariner graduates of VVMIOLU named after. F.E. Dzerzhinsky (located in the Admiralty building) there was a tradition, on the night before release, to rub the eggs of Peter’s horse. After that they sparkled brightly, for almost half a year))) now the school has been moved and the tradition has died...

They wash it periodically... with soap)))

Late in the evening the monument is no less mysterious and beautiful...

Info and part of the photo (C) Internet. Basis: site "Legends of St. Petersburg", Wikipedia,

Charity wall newspaper for schoolchildren, parents and teachers “Briefly and clearly about the most interesting things.” Issue 98, August 2016.

Catherine II, Denis Diderot, Dmitry Golitsyn, Etienne Falconet, Yuri Felten, Ivan Bakmeister, Alexander Radishchev, Ludwig Nikolai, Lewis Carroll and many others: quotes from correspondence and memoirs.

Wall newspapers of the charitable educational project “Briefly and clearly about the most interesting things” (site site) are intended for schoolchildren, parents and teachers of St. Petersburg. They are delivered free of charge to most educational institutions, as well as to a number of hospitals, orphanages and other institutions in the city. The project's publications do not contain any advertising (only founders' logos), are politically and religiously neutral, written in easy language, and well illustrated. They are intended as informational “inhibition” of students, awakening cognitive activity and the desire to read. Authors and publishers, without pretending to provide academic completeness of the material, publish interesting facts, illustrations, interviews with famous figures of science and culture and thereby hope to increase the interest of schoolchildren in the educational process..ru. We thank the Education Department of the Administration Kirovsky district St. Petersburg and everyone who selflessly helps in distributing our wall newspapers. Special thanks to Nadezhda Nikolaevna Efremova, Deputy Director for Research, for the materials and consultations provided.

2016 marks the 300th anniversary of the birth of the French sculptor Etienne Maurice Falconet. His only monumental work is the world-famous monument to Peter I on Senate Square, known to everyone as the Bronze Horseman. Our wall newspaper contains the main stages of the creation of this, perhaps, the most striking symbol of St. Petersburg. In order to feel the atmosphere of the enlightened Catherine’s era together with the reader, we tried to give the floor to direct participants and eyewitnesses of the events described. We plan to discuss the secrets of the Bronze Horseman, revealed during the restoration, as well as the fascinating history of his pedestal - the “Thunder Stone” - in our next issues.

"Leading to Amazement"

Senate square. Drawing by an unknown author.

“The monument to Peter the Great in Leningrad is an outstanding work of Russian and world sculpture. Erected on the banks of the Neva almost two hundred years ago, it became a vivid example of the triumph of educational ideas, - this is how Doctor of Art History, Professor Abraham Kaganovich begins his fundamental book “The Bronze Horseman” (1975). – Time turned out to have no power over the monument; it only further confirmed its enduring historical significance and aesthetic value. The monument not only glorifies a hero, an outstanding statesman, but in a vivid figurative form it captures the changes that took place in Russia in the first quarter of the 18th century, at the time of state reforms that radically changed the life of the country... Of great interest is not only the content of the monument, its plastic merits, but also the history of its creation.”

Earlier authors also spoke in the same enthusiastic tone (and emphasizing a special interest in the history of the creation of the monument). Thus, the librarian of the Imperial Public Library, writer and theologian Anton Ivanovsky in the book “Conversations about Peter the Great and His Colleagues” (1872) exclaimed: “Which of us, passing through Petrovskaya Square, did not stop in front of the monument to Peter I... which, in its beauty, , majesty and lofty idea has no equal on the entire globe... how much work and incredible efforts did it take to build this marvelous monument, which amazes not only us, but also foreigners? The history of the construction of this monument is so interesting and at the same time instructive...” Entire volumes have been written about the creation of the Bronze Horseman (the most interesting books are listed at the end of the wall newspaper), so we will very briefly note here key points this “entertaining and instructive story,” trying to adhere to the memories of contemporaries and the assessments of recognized experts.

“Not made by art like this”

Why did Catherine not like the statue by Rastrelli?

Monument to Peter I by B.K. Rastrelli in front of the Mikhailovsky Castle.

In 1762, Catherine II began to reign. The Senate immediately obsequiously proposed erecting a monument to herself. The young empress decided that she would act more wisely, perpetuating the memory not of herself, but of Peter the Great, the transformer of Russia, thereby emphasizing the continuity of her rule.

It is noteworthy that by the time the need arose to erect an equestrian monument to Peter I in St. Petersburg, an equestrian statue of Peter I in St. Petersburg... already existed. We are talking about a sculpture by the Italian sculptor Bartolomeo Carlo Rastrelli. He made a model of the monument during the life of Peter I, having previously made a wax mask-cast directly from the emperor’s face and thereby achieved the greatest portrait resemblance. In 1747, the sculpture was cast in bronze, but after that, forgotten by everyone, it was stored in a barn. Catherine, having examined the monument, came to the conclusion that “it was not made by art in the way that it should represent such a great monarch and serve to decorate the capital city of St. Petersburg.” Why?

With the death of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, the Baroque era ended in Russia. It's amazing how quickly even the most beautiful creations can go out of style! Empress Catherine the Great and her associates were no longer attracted to lush “curls”; the time of classicism was coming. In art, the simplicity and clarity of the image, the rejection of decorative details, respect for the free personality of the enlightened hero, the motives for conquering wild prejudices and ascending from dense ignorance to bright reason began to be valued. It is natural that during this period architects appreciated the pristine beauty of natural stone. So, “the image created by Rastrelli, where the formidable emperor dominated,” Kaganovich concludes, “in many ways looked like an anachronism. The Age of Enlightenment could not accept such a limited interpretation of it. A new, deeper and more modern solution for the monument was needed.”

"An experienced and talented sculptor"

Why did you choose Falcon?

Sculptural portrait of Etienne Falconet, made by his student Marie-Anne Collot (1773). Museum of the city of Nancy, France.

As Mikhail Pylyaev reports in his famous book “Old Petersburg. Stories from the former life of the capital,” in 1765, Catherine ordered the Russian envoy in Paris, Prince Dmitry Golitsyn, to find her “an experienced and talented sculptor.” Famous French sculptors were considered as candidates for the role of creator of the monument to Peter the Great: Augustin Pajou, Guillaume Coustou (the younger), Louis-Claude Vasse and Etienne Falconet (according to French tradition, the emphasis is placed on the last syllable). The presence of Golitsyn’s impeccable artistic flair is confirmed, in particular, by one of his friends, the philosopher-educator Denis Diderot: “The prince... was incredibly successful in his knowledge of art... he has high thoughts and a beautiful soul. And a person with such a soul does not have bad taste.” Diderot recommended that Golitsyn (as well as Catherine herself, since they were in friendly correspondence) opt for Falcon: “Here is a man of genius, full of all sorts of qualities characteristic and unusual for a genius. He has an abyss of subtle taste, intelligence, delicacy, charm and grace... he crushes clay, processes marble, and at the same time reads and reflects... this man thinks and feels with greatness.”

On August 27, 1766 (250 years ago), Falcone signed a contract for the production of an “equestrian statue of colossal size” in St. Petersburg. In September of the same year, accompanied by his student Marie-Anne Collot, he left Paris for St. Petersburg, where he arrived about a month later and immediately began work. The secretary of the Russian Historical Society, Alexander Polovtsov, in the preface to “Correspondence of Empress Catherine II with Falconet” (published in 1876) indicated: “The artist who undertook such a difficult task and such a long journey was not one of those foreigners who fled to Russia who were not lucky at home, and who thought of finding easy bread in what they considered a barbaric country, no, Falconet was exactly fifty years old, and in these fifty years he had already earned an honorable place among his fellow citizens...

On September 10, 1766, Falconet left Paris; his things were sent by sea... it turns out that in 25 boxes one only contained the artist’s belongings, the rest were filled with books, engravings, marble, as well as casts and photographs for the Academy of Arts.” Advising his friend, Diderot exclaimed: “Remember, Falconet, that you must either die at work, or create something great!”

“Diderot gave me the opportunity to acquire a person who, I think, has no equal: this is Falconet; he will soon start a statue of Peter the Great, and if there are artists who are equal to him in art, then I boldly think that there are none who could be compared with him in feelings: in a word, he is Diderot’s soulmate,” - so Catherine herself responded about the arriving sculptor.

"Great Deeds and Most Memorable Adventures"

What's "bad" about ancient statues?

The statue of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius in Rome is the only equestrian statue to survive from antiquity.

One of the projects of the monument to Peter I by B.K. Rastrelli “with allegorical figures.” Detail of the “Plan of the capital city of St. Petersburg...” by Mikhail Makhaev (1753).

At first, Catherine’s entourage was inclined to copy the composition of one of the equestrian monuments to kings and commanders installed by that time in European countries. This is, first of all, a statue of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius in Rome (160–180s); statue of the Italian condottiere (mercenary) Bartolomeo Colleoni in Venice (sculptor Andrea Verrocchio, 1480s); statue of the Elector (ruler) of Brandenburg Friedrich Wilhelm in Berlin (sculptor Andreas Schlüter, 1703); the statue of King Louis XIV of France in Paris (sculptor François Girardon, 1683; destroyed during the French Revolution of 1789-1799) and other outstanding works.

So, Jacob Staehlin, activist Russian Academy scientist and memoirist, wrote: “A statue of His Majesty on a horse will be erected, and its pedestal will be decorated with bas-reliefs glorifying his great deeds and his most memorable adventures.” At the corners of the pedestal there were supposed to be statues of the vices that Peter “with undaunted courage deposed,” namely: “gross ignorance, insane superstition, mendicant laziness and evil deception.” As a backup, there was an option with statues of “heroic spirit, untiring courage, victory and immortal glory.”

Architect Johann Schumacher proposed to build in front of the Winter Palace or in front of the Kunstkamera building “in view of the courtyard, the collegium, the Admiralty, and especially the ships sailing along the Neva River... a building... of white marble, cast metal and red gilded copper and with convex work ", surrounded by allegorical figures of seas and rivers, "showing the space of this state."

Baron Bilinstein proposed erecting a monument on the banks of the Neva - so that Peter would look with his right eye at the Admiralty and towards the entire Empire, and with his left eye at Vasilyevsky Island and the Ingria he conquered. Falcone retorted that such a thing was only possible with strabismus. “The right and left eyes of Peter the Great made me laugh very much; this is more than stupid,” Catherine echoed him. “You seem to think, dear sir,” Falconet wrote to the baron, “that the sculptor is deprived of the ability to think, and that his hands can only act with the help of someone else’s head, and not his own. So find out that the artist is the creator of his work... Give him advice, he listens to it because in the most smart head there is always enough room to place error. But if you act as an official distributor of ideas, then you will only be funny.”

Even Diderot recommended a convoluted solution to Falconet: “Show them your hero... driving barbarism before him... with his hair half loose, half braided, with his body covered with wild skin, casting a fierce, menacing look at your hero, fearing him and preparing to be trampled under the hooves his horse; so that on the one hand I see the love of the people stretching out their hands to their legislator, watching him off and blessing him, so that on the other hand I see the symbol of the nation, spread out on the earth and calmly enjoying peace, relaxation and carelessness.”
Ivan Betskoy, president of the Academy of Arts, head of the Commission on Stone Construction (and also the official appointed by Catherine to be in charge of everything related to the construction of the monument to Peter), insisted that Falcone take the statue of Marcus Aurelius as a model. Their dispute went so far that Falcone was forced to write an entire treatise, “Observations on the Statue of Marcus Aurelius.” Along with a deep analysis of ancient sculpture, Falcone ironically notes that in such a pose the horse will not be able to take a single step, since the movements of all its legs do not correspond to each other.

Catherine supported Falcone as best she could: “Listen, throw away... the statue of Marcus Aurelius and the bad reasoning of people who do not understand any sense, go your own way, you will do a hundred times better by listening to your stubbornness...”

“The ancients were not so superior to us; they did not do everything so well that there was nothing left for us to do,” the sculptor believed. It required unsurpassed courage and confidence in own strength, in order to move away from the age-old traditions of depicting rulers in military armor calmly sitting in identical poses on measuredly walking horses, surrounded by allegorical figures.
The place for the monument was determined on May 5, 1768, when Betskoy announced to the Senate: “Her Imperial Majesty deigned to verbally command the monument to be erected on the square between the Neva River, from the Admiralty and the house in which the Governing Senate is present.”

"Hero on the Emblematic Rock"

How was Falconet's idea born?

Engraving “Equestrian statue of Peter the Great” from the album “Costume Russian Empire"(London, 1811).

A snake under a horse’s hooves is a symbol of defeated envy.

While still in Paris, Falconet thought about the design of the future monument and made its first sketches. “That day when I sketched on the corner of your table a hero and his horse jumping over an emblematic rock, and you were so pleased with my idea,” he later wrote to Diderot. – The monument will be made simply. There will be no barbarity, people's love, or a symbol of the nation there. Peter the Great is his own subject and attribute: all that remains is to show it. I imagine the hero not as a great commander and conqueror, although he was, of course, both. We must show humanity a more beautiful sight, the creator, legislator, benefactor of his country... My king does not hold a rod in his hand, he extends his beneficent hand over the country over which he flies, he climbs this rock, which serves as his foundation - an emblem of difficulties which he overcame. So, this fatherly hand, this jump over a steep cliff—this is the plot that Peter the Great gives me.”

The clothes of the future rider caused serious thought. The options offered included a European suit that was fashionable at the time, a Roman toga, military armor, and ancient Russian attire. Ivan Bakmeister, a librarian of the Academy of Sciences who personally knew Falcone, spoke categorically about modern clothing in his remarkable work “Historical News of the Statued Equestrian Image of Peter the Great” (1783): “French clothing for the heroic sculptured image is completely obscene, erect and sea-buckthorny.” . Antique and knightly clothing “is a masquerade when worn by a person who was not a Roman, and especially when he is not depicted as a warrior... If this is an old Moscow caftan, then it is not suitable for someone who has declared war on beards and caftans. If you dress Peter in the clothes that he wore, then it will not make it possible to convey movement and lightness in a large sculpture, especially in an equestrian monument. Therefore, Peter’s costume is the clothing of all nations, all people, all times - in a word, a heroic costume,” Falcone concluded.

The snake as an important element of the composition also appeared as a result of much thought. “This allegory gives the object all the power inherent to it, which it did not have before... Peter the Great was opposed by envy, that is certain; he bravely overcame it... such is the fate of every great man,” Falcone convinced Catherine. “If I ever made a statue of Your Majesty, and if the composition allowed it, then I would throw envy at the bottom of the pedestal.” The Empress answered evasively: “I neither like nor dislike the allegorical snake. I wanted to find out all sorts of objections to the snake...” And there were many objections: some thought that the snake was too “smooth” and it would be better “made with greater curvatures,” others that it was too big or too small. And Betskoy, in conversations with Catherine, presented the snake only as a manifestation of the sculptor’s whim. It soon became clear that the wise Falcone conceived the snake not only as a bright artistic image, but also as part of the supporting structure: “People... perhaps too sensitive to the slightly bold but simple trick of my inspiration, believe that the snake should be removed... But these people They don’t know, like me, that without this happy episode the support of the statue would have been very unreliable. They didn't calculate the strength I needed with me. They do not know that if they listened to their advice, the monument would be unstable.” The fate of the snake was decided by these words of Catherine: “there is one old song that says: if it is necessary, then it is necessary, this is my answer regarding the snake.”

As Kaganovich figuratively put it, “the horseman crushed with his passionate energy, the swiftness of his impulse, a deadly obstacle, a clot of envy, deceit and betrayal that interfered with the free movement of progress.”

Let us finally cite a significant remark by Lewis Carroll (author of Alice in Wonderland) from his Diary of a Travel to Russia (1867): “If this monument had stood in Berlin, Peter would undoubtedly have been busy directly killing this monster, but here he doesn’t even look at him: obviously, the “killer” principle is not recognized here.”

“I have completed my main job!”

How was the work on the model?

Adolphe Charlemagne. M.-A. Collo sculpts the head of Peter I, fragment (1867). Filmstrip “The Bronze Horseman” (1981).

Drawing of a model of the monument to Peter the Great, made by artist Anton Losenko in Falconet’s workshop (1770). Museum of the city of Nancy (France).

Falcone arrived in St. Petersburg at the end of 1766 and, already at the beginning of the next year, having agreed on the composition of the future monument, he began making its “small model”. A year later she was ready and received the highest approval. On February 1, 1768, a “large model” was begun - life-size of the future bronze statue.

The master’s selfless and thoughtful work on every detail is emphasized by the following memories: “... when I had the idea to depict a horse in a gallop and on the rise in sculpture, I turned not to my memory, and even less to my imagination, in order to make an accurate model. I studied nature. To do this, I commissioned the making of a slide, which I gave the slope that my pedestal should have. I made the rider gallop: first, not just once, but more than a hundred times; second - in different time; third - on different horses. For the eye can only grasp the effects of such rapid movements by means of many repeated impressions. Having studied the movement of the horse I had chosen as a whole, I moved on to studying the details. I examined, sculpted, drew every part - from below, from above, in front, behind, on both sides, because there is no other means of obtaining an exact knowledge of the subject; only after these studies did I believe that I had seen and was able to convey a horse rising up in a gallop, to convey the true shape of the muscles and ligaments...” (Note that the camera was invented only 60 years later).

In the contract, Falcone specifically stipulated the possibility of an unhindered choice of horses and sitters. The sculptor chose the best stallions from the court stable - they turned out to be the handsome Brilliant and Caprice. The name of one of the riders is known - Afanasy Telezhnikov. According to legend, Colonel Peter Melissino also posed for Falcone, “with a face and physique very similar to the emperor.” The sculptor was advised by a prominent horse connoisseur English ambassador Lord Cathcard.

A significant problem turned out to be sculpting the emperor's head.
“In order... to depict the facial features of the original in the model as accurately as possible, he received, by the highest order from the Academy of Sciences, a very similar plaster head of Peter the Great, he also ordered from Bologna an image cast from the chest image located there, very similar to the emperor ; In addition, he was allowed to look at his will at the image made from wax, located in the Academy, taken from the face of the emperor himself,” Backmeister testified. Apparently, after several unsuccessful attempts to produce a sculptural portrait of Peter that fully corresponded to the plan, Falcone entrusted this task to Marie-Anne Collot, with whom she, being a portrait painter, coped brilliantly.

In July 1769, a life-size clay model of the future monument was made. Until the spring of next year she was “transferred to plaster.” “I have completed my main work! – Falcone wrote to a friend. “Oh, if the monument I brought to the end was worthy of the great man he depicts, if this monument did not disgrace either art or my fatherland, then I could say with Horace: “Not all of me will die!”

"A fragment of a great epic poem"

What did the public say when the model was unveiled?

This is how the monument to Peter the Great was remembered by the Japanese traveler Daikokuya Kodai, who visited St. Petersburg in 1791. National Museum of Tokyo.

Falcone contacted the Academy of Arts and invited Russian artists to discuss the shortcomings of the model, “which may still be there, in order to correct them if possible,” after which the model was exhibited “for two whole weeks for a national spectacle.” “St. Petersburg Vedomosti” wrote about this: “On May 19 from 11 to 2 and in the afternoon from 6 to 8 o’clock, the model Petru Vel will be shown for two weeks from now on. in a building located on the site of the former winter palace on Nevsky Prospekt.”
“Finally, the curtain has risen,” Falcone wrote with excitement. “I am, of course, at the mercy of the public; my workshop is jam-packed.”

“Some praised her, others blasphemed her,” Backmeister testified. – The front part of the horse’s neck, according to the expert’s notes, is made a quarter of an inch thicker than it should be... the astute husband, perhaps not without reason, noticed that the fingers of the outstretched hand were very wide. Does it follow from this, as some have thought, that they were coupled together? Such a hand would not express anything and would not mean anything. Others found that the content of the size of the head in the discussion of the legs was wrong... Others still thought simple clothing was obscene...” Someone Yakovlev “found the emperor’s mustache terrible.” The Synod prosecutor was indignant at the fact that “a man and a horse are twice as large as they usually are.” A certain Englishman demanded a “written explanation” so that he could understand “the meaning of the rock and the position of the horse.” Ludwig von Nicolai, future president of the Academy of Sciences, recalled: “Falcone... had a lot of fun at the judgments of his visitors. One kind fellow exclaimed: “My God! What was this man thinking? Of course, Peter I is called great, and that is what he was. But not the same giant!” Falcone met one privy councilor near the door, and, as usual, asked his opinion. “Oh, oh,” he began at first sight. - How could you make such a gross mistake? Don’t you see that one leg is much longer than the other?” - “I thank you for your remark, but let’s explore this matter in more detail.” “Falcone led him to the other side. - “Here you go! Now the other one is longer!” Two men stopped in front of the statue: “Why is Peter extending his hand into the air like that?” “You’re a fool,” the other objected, “he’s testing whether it’s raining or not.” Further, Nikolai wrote: “Falcone paid exceptional attention to the horse, and considered the image of Peter to be almost a secondary matter. He felt that in creating a horse he could surpass the ancient sculptors, but in depicting Peter he could barely reach the old masters. The Russian people, who were expecting a monument to Peter, and not his horse, did not like this, especially when he commissioned his student, Mademoiselle Collot, to sculpt the hero’s head, main part all the work."

Such criticism both amused and hurt Falcone. “Laugh at fools and go your way. This is my rule,” Catherine encouraged him. However, there were much more rave reviews.
“Today I saw the famous equestrian statue of Peter I,” wrote the French diplomat Marie Corberon, “this is the best of all its kind that I know. You know all the controversy, abuse and ridicule that it caused; I can assure you that she will make you forget all this.” Here is the testimony of one English traveler: “This work combines simplicity with the grandeur of the concept... This monument is one of a kind, and it perfectly expresses the character of both the man and the nation over which he ruled.” Falconet's teacher, Jean-Louis Lemoine (he received a small copy of the sculpture by mail) wrote this: “I always considered Falconet very talented and was firmly convinced that he would create a magnificent monument to the Russian Tsar, but what I saw exceeded all expectations.” .

Diderot, who visited St. Petersburg in 1773-1774, responded, as one would expect, enthusiastically: “This work, like a truly beautiful work, is distinguished by the fact that it seems beautiful when you see it for the first time, but the second, third, fourth time seems even more beautiful: you leave it with regret and always willingly return to it.” “The hero and the horse together make up the beautiful Centaur, whose human and thinking part is surprisingly calm in contrast to the part of the furious animal.” And again: “The truth of nature has retained all its purity; but your genius merged with it the brilliance of ever-increasing and amazing poetry. Your horse is not a snapshot of the most beautiful of existing horses, just as Apollo Belvedere is not a repetition of the most beautiful of people: both are the essence of the work of both the creator and the artist. He is colossal but light, he is powerful and graceful, his head is full of intelligence and life. As far as I could judge, it was executed with extreme observation, but deep study of the details does not harm the overall impression; everything is done in a big way. You don’t feel any tension or labor anywhere; You'll think it's just one day's work. Let me state a hard truth. I knew you to be a very skilled person, but I never imagined anything like this in your head... You managed to create in life... a fragment of a great epic poem.”

Probably, the sculptor most rejoiced at the empress’s words about “that smart beast that occupies the middle... of the workshop”: “This horse, in spite of you and between your fingers touching the clay, gallops straight to posterity, which, of course, will appreciate its perfection better than its contemporaries.” .

"Like Boldness"

History of the Thunder Stone

Medal “Like Daring”, minted in honor of the unique transportation of the Thunder Stone - from the Lakhtinsky swamp to Senate Square.

“An ordinary base, on which most of the statues are mounted,” wrote Backmeister, “means nothing and is not capable of arousing a new reverent thought in the soul of the viewer... The chosen base for a sculptured image Russian hero there must be a wild and inaccessible stone... A new, daring and expressive thought! The stone itself, with its decoration, should remind of the then state of the state and of the difficulties that its creator had to overcome in achieving his intentions... At a distance of almost six miles from St. Petersburg, near the village of Lakhta, in a flat and swampy country, nature produced a stone of terrible size... Looking at it was exciting surprise, and the thought of moving him to another place was terrifying.”

They dug up a huge stone, hoisted it onto a platform with levers, dragged it along special rails to the shore of the Gulf of Finland, loaded it onto a specially designed barge and delivered it to St. Petersburg. The history of the Thunderstone is so fascinating that we decided to dedicate one of the next issues of the wall newspaper to it.

Detailed description of the casting of the statue

Making a plaster mold for the subsequent casting of the statue of Louis XIV. Yverdon Encyclopedia (1777).

Wax copy of the statue of Louis XIV with a system of tubes - for pouring bronze, flowing out wax and releasing steam. Yverdon Encyclopedia (1777).

A mold covered with iron hoops, ready to begin casting the statue of Louis XIV. Yverdon Encyclopedia (1777).
The inscription on the pedestal is in Latin. Can you translate it? What about the bottom line?

The technology of casting small bronze figurines was known back in the 3rd millennium BC. First, they made a model of the future figurine (for example, from wood). The model was covered with a layer of clay. After hardening, this clay shell was cut into two halves, carefully separated, the model was taken out, and the halves were again connected and wrapped with wire. A hole was drilled at the top of the mold thus obtained and molten bronze was poured inside. All that was left was to wait until the bronze hardened, remove the mold and admire the resulting figurine.

In order to save expensive metal, they learned how to make hollow figurines. In this case, the inside of the mold was coated with a layer of soft wax and the remaining void was filled with sand. A fire was lit under the mold, the wax melted and flowed out. Now the molten bronze poured on top occupied the volume in which the wax had previously been located. The bronze froze, after which the mold was dismantled, and the sand from inside the figurine was poured out through a hole left in advance.

Falcone acted on approximately the same principle (taking into account the fact that the result should have been an eight-ton, five-meter giant, and not a small figurine). Unfortunately, neither Falcone nor anyone around him made any sketches (or they have not yet been discovered). Therefore, we present here drawings illustrating the casting of the monument to Louis XIV in Paris.

“First of all, the plaster mold had to be removed from the large model of the sculpture,” says Backmeister. This means that the model was coated on all sides with a thick layer of semi-hardened plaster, trying to fill every fold. The model was first coated with fat so that the plaster would not stick to it. After this plaster mold had hardened, it was cut into pieces, numbered and removed from the model. A layer of melted wax was applied to the inner surface of each piece with a brush.
Falcone understood: in order to ensure the stability of the statue, its center of gravity should be made as low as possible (like that of a tumbler doll). To do this, the walls of the statue must be thick and heavy at the bottom, and very thin at the top, no more than 7.5 mm. Taking this into account, wax of different thicknesses was applied to the mold. Then the pieces of the mold, coated with wax on the inside, were reassembled, reinforced in the right places with a steel frame. The void inside was filled with a special hardening composition of gypsum and ground brick. Now, having carefully removed the plaster mold, Falcone had the opportunity to carefully examine the wax copy of the future statue in order to make final adjustments. “Any remaining unnoticed error in the large model could then be corrected, every feature in the face brought to greater perfection. The maiden Kollot practiced especially in straightening the model of the horseman's head she had made. Several weeks were spent on this work.”
Now it was necessary to carry many wax rods to the most secluded corners of the future statue. Subsequently, having melted inside the clay mass, each such wax rod will turn into a tube - a sprue. The sprues were combined into five large pipes. Special tubes were intended to drain the melted wax, as well as to allow air to escape as the mold was filled with bronze. All these numerous tubes “fit tightly to the model and gave the appearance of a branched tree.”

This entire structure, with the greatest precautions, “had to be covered with a clay composition. The wax was coated with this liquefied matter several times until it was half an inch thick; The dry and hardened bark was covered alternately with brick, glue and earth until it became eight inches thick. In order to properly strengthen the clay mold, they surrounded it with iron strips and rims. The last job left was melting the wax." A huge fire was lit around this new, downright armored mold, which burned for eight days, after which all the wax (and there were 100 pounds of it!) flowed out, making room for subsequent bronze pouring, and the mold itself hardened and became even stronger.

“The time for casting the statue was approaching. The day before, the smelting furnace was fired, the supervision of which was entrusted to the cannon foundry master Khailov. The next day, when the copper had already melted enough, the five main pipes that were led up were opened and the copper was let in” (it should be noted that previously the word “copper” was used to refer to all metals similar in composition, including bronze). “The lower parts of the form are all already filled, which promised best success, but suddenly the copper flowed out of the clay mold and spilled onto the floor, which began to burn. The astonished Falconet (and what artist would not be astonished to see his nine-year work destroyed in a few minutes, that his honor was perishing, and that his envious people were already triumphant) hurried ahead of everyone else from there, and the danger also forced others to quickly follow him. Only Khailov, who looked with indignation at the leaking copper, stayed until the end... and picked up the leaked molten copper to the last drop into the mold, not in the least afraid of the danger to which his life was exposed. Falconet was so touched by this brave and honest act of the foundry master that, at the end of the work, he ran up to him, kissed him heartily and showed his most sensitive gratitude with the gift of several money from his own wallet... However, this casting can be considered the best, which is hardly anywhere committed. For neither in the rider nor in the horse is there a single shell or crack visible in the copper, but everything was cast as cleanly as wax.” As a result of this accident, the upper part of the monument was nevertheless damaged. “The shoulder-length horseman's head was so bad that I broke that ugly piece of bronze. The upper half of the horse’s head along a horizontal line is in the same position,” Falcone grieved. In 1777, he topped up - this time flawlessly.

“A lot of work was still required to finish the cast so that it could be publicly displayed. The composition filling the inside of the mold... and the excess iron device had to be removed; it was necessary to saw off the pipes located along the entire surface of the sculpture, which served to drain the wax, allow air to flow out, and spill molten copper; soak the bark that comes from mixing copper with clay, and beat it off with special tools; fill cracks and crevices with copper; give uneven or thickly cast parts a proportionate thickness and generally try to polish the entire sculpture in the most perfect way... Finally, Falconet enjoyed the pleasure of seeing his creation completely finished.” In memory of these events, the sculptor left the inscription on the fold of Peter I’s cloak: “Sculpted and cast by Etienne Falconet, a Parisian in 1778.”
Alas, at this stage, Falconet’s relations with Catherine’s entourage, primarily with Betsky, deteriorated so much that the master was forced to leave St. Petersburg forever, without waiting for the opening of his main creation. Backmeister wrote bitterly: “The confluence of various circumstances... made his further stay in St. Petersburg unpleasant for him, despite all the respect that his art and scholarship deserved. His departure was left to his will, and after a twelve-year stay here, he left in September 1778...”

The completion of the unfinished work was entrusted to Yuri Felten, academician, chief architect of the Office of Her Imperial Majesty's Houses and Gardens, who had been working with Falcone for several years. I wonder what was left to do? “Under the leadership of Felten,” Kaganovich reports, “two stones were placed in front and behind the rock, which somewhat lengthened the pedestal and gave it the shape that it retains to this day. Placing the statue on the pedestal was undoubtedly a great challenge. However, in this case, Felten did not encounter undue difficulties, since it is known that the calculations during casting turned out to be so accurate, and the casting itself was carried out with such skill that the rider, mounted vertically and not yet strengthened in any way, retained reliable stability. Felten also had to, according to his “report” to the Office of Buildings, “... make a model of the parts of the snake, pour them out and strengthen them on stone. Around the monument, pave the area with large pieces of wild stone and surround it with a lattice with decent decorations,” and also “strengthen the inscription on both sides of the pedestal.” By the way, Falcone was against the fence: “There will be no bars around Peter the Great - why put him in a cage?”

The inscription on the pedestal also has its own interesting history. Diderot proposed this option: “Catherine the Second dedicated the monument to Peter the Great. The resurrected valor brought this huge rock with colossal effort and threw it under the feet of the hero.” Falconet, in a letter to Catherine, insisted on a shorter inscription: “Peter the First was erected by Catherine the Second” and clarified: “I would very much like it if... they didn’t think of writing anything more... thanks to the newest bad minds, they began to make endless inscriptions, in which chatter is wasted when one apt word would be enough.” Catherine, having removed the word “erected” with a royal flourish, gave her descendants a laconic and deeply meaningful motto in St. Petersburg: “Catherine the Second to Peter the Great.”

“This simple, noble and lofty inscription expresses everything that only the reader should think about it,” sums up Backmeister.

“The image of the monarch appeared in the highest perfection”

Description of the opening of the monument

Unveiling of the monument to Peter I on Senate Square in St. Petersburg. Engraving by A.K. Melnikov from a drawing by A.P. Davydov (1782). State Hermitage Museum.

View of St. Isaac's Bridge. Colorized lithograph (1830s). The impression of the monument to Peter the Great was further enhanced by the fact that a floating bridge across the Neva was built directly opposite it (existed in 1727-1916 with interruptions).
“Behind him everywhere the Bronze Horseman galloped with a heavy stomp...” Illustration by A.N. Benois (1903) for the poem “The Bronze Horseman” by A.S. Pushkin.

Many descriptions of this spectacular festival have been preserved; The most valuable thing for us is the memories of eyewitnesses. Let's listen to Ivan Backmeister: “...Everyone looked forward with pleasure to the day on which this monument was to be opened to the people. Her Imperial Majesty deigned to set this celebration on the 7th day of August 1782... The opening of this monument followed exactly one hundred years after the accession to the All-Russian throne of the hero to whom it was erected in honor. Before the grand opening of the statue... a linen fence was placed near it, on which stones and mountainous countries were depicted in various colors. The weather was... at first cloudy and rainy; but, despite this, people flocked from all parts of the city... in the thousands. Finally, as the sky began to brighten, spectators began to gather in great crowds in galleries specially made for this occasion. The Admiralty Wall and all the windows near the houses were filled with spectators, even the very roofs of the houses were covered with them. At noon, the regiments designated for this celebration, under the leadership of their commanders, set off from their places and took the places shown to them... The number of troops extended to 15,000 people... At the fourth hour, Her Imperial Majesty deigned to arrive on a boat. Soon after this, the monarch appeared on the balcony of the Senate. Her favorable appearance attracted the gaze of countless people, filled with reverent surprise. The signal followed - at that very moment the fence fell to the ground without visible support, and the sculptured image of the Great Monarch appeared in the highest perfection. What a disgrace! (Have you noticed, dear reader, this word? A linguistic gift straight from the 18th century! You can conduct your own little research into why the author wrote it that way). “The Great Catherine, filled with feeling for the feats undertaken by her ancestor for the bliss and glory of Russia, bows her head before him. Her eyes are filled with tears!.. Then nationwide exclamations were heard. All regiments congratulated the sculptured image of the hero by beating drums and saluting, bowing banners and proclaiming three times congratulations, which was accompanied by the thunder of cannons from the fortress, from the Admiralty and from the imperial yachts, which were immediately decorated with flags and heralded this joyful triumph in all parts of the city , to whom it should forever be precious and holy. At the end of the day, the whole city was illuminated, and especially Petrovskaya Square, with a great variety of lights.”

Alexander Radishchev, the author of the famous “Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow,” also impressed by the opening of the monument, wrote in a letter to a friend: “Yesterday the dedication of the monument to Peter the Great took place here with splendor in honor of the erected... The statue represents a powerful horseman, on a greyhound horse, rushing up the mountain steep, the top of which he had already reached, crushing the snake lying on the way and stopping the encroaching snake with his sting, the rapid rise of horse and rider... The steepness of the mountain is the essence of the obstacles that Peter had in putting his intentions into action; the snake lying on the way - deceit and malice that sought his death for the introduction of new morals; ancient clothing, animal skin and all the simple attire of horse and rider - the essence of simple and rude morals and lack of enlightenment that Peter found in the people whom he set out to transform; a head crowned with laurels - for the conqueror was before the legislator; the appearance of manly and powerful and the strength of the transformer; an outstretched hand, protective, as Diderot calls it, and a cheerful gaze are the essence of inner assurance that has reached the goal, and the outstretched hand shows that a strong husband, having overcome all the vices that opposed his aspirations, gives his protection to everyone called his children. Here, dear friend, is a faint image of what, looking at the image of Petrov, I feel.”

There is no need to say that even today Falcone’s immortal creation continues to inspire admiration. Art critic Solomon Volkov writes in his book “The History of the Culture of St. Petersburg from the Founding to the Present Day”: “Although almost everyone understood and recognized the high merits of the monument, it was hardly clear to the first viewers that before them was one of greatest works sculptures XVIII century. And of course, walking around the statue of equestrian Peter and as they moved, discovering more and more new aspects of his image - a wise and decisive legislator, a fearless commander, an unyielding monarch who did not tolerate obstacles - the crowd did not realize that before them was the most important, eternal, forever the most a popular symbol of their city."

“However, no one perceived the sculptor’s creation as deeply and subtly as Pushkin,” Kaganovich rightly concludes. In the fall of 1833 in Boldino, the monument to Peter the Great forever became the Bronze Horseman for us. Impressed by Pushkin's poem, composer Reinhold Glier created a ballet of the same name, a fragment of which became the official anthem of St. Petersburg.

"Protect the stone and bronze"

How to behave with monuments?

An employee of the State Museum of Urban Sculpture applies a special restoration agent to the statue.

The Bronze Horseman today.

Since 1932, the study, protection and restoration of the Bronze Horseman (along with other monuments of monumental art in our city) has been the responsibility of the State Museum of Urban Sculpture. Nadezhda Nikolaevna Efremova, Deputy Director of the Museum for scientific work, told us about the culture of handling monuments.

“Monuments are the most accessible type visual arts. To see, for example, a painting or theatrical production, you need to put in some effort. And the monuments are always in front of us - in the city squares. It is difficult for monuments to live in the modern world. Intensifying negative impacts, which the author could not even foresee. For example, vibration. After all, the monuments were created at a time when heavy vehicles had not yet walked the streets. Another problem is the blockage of groundwater flows as a result of economic activities. As a result, water flows under the heavy pedestal, setting its constituent stone blocks in motion. At the same time, the gaps between them increase and the seams are destroyed, which we treat with a special mastic. Monuments, although made of metal and stone, are generally defenseless against humans. I saw how on holidays people climbed onto the neck of a horse, grabbing its front legs, not realizing that the thickness of the metal here was insignificant. Pressing bronze even with the soles of boots is as easy as shelling pears. This unusual stress causes invisible cracks in the metal. In our climate - from temperature changes, from water getting inside - any microcrack grows rapidly. It is also very important not to disturb the patina - the thinnest film covering the bronze. The coloristic features of the patina are the calling card of each monument. And if someone (it is not clear why) scratches or polishes some part of the statue to a shine, he not only makes the bronze unprotected, but also destroys the unique shade of patina, which is extremely difficult to reproduce. Falcone from the very beginning refused to install a fence: “If you need to protect stone and bronze from crazy people and children, then there are sentries in the Russian Empire.” Without relying on the “sentinels,” it would be good for us to realize that any contact with the monument (except visual) is detrimental to it.”

In one of the next issues we will continue the conversation about the secrets of the Bronze Horseman revealed during its latest restoration.

What to read about the Bronze Horseman?

Kaganovich, A. L. The Bronze Horseman. History of the creation of the monument. L.: Art, 1982. 2nd edition, revised. and additional

Ivanov, G.I. Stone-Thunder: history. story. (To the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg). St. Petersburg: Stroyizdat, 1994.

Arkin, D. E. The Bronze Horseman. Monument to Peter I in Leningrad. M.-L.: Art, 1958.

Creation of a model and casting of the monument to Peter I in St. Petersburg. Extract from the work of I. G. Backmeister 1782-1786.

Opening of the monument to Peter I in St. Petersburg. August 7, 1782 Extract from the work of I. G. Backmeister. 1786

Lewis Carroll. Diary of a trip to Russia in 1867. Translation by N. Demurova

Radishchev A.N. Letter to a friend living in Tobolsk/Communication. P.A. Efremov // Russian antiquity, 1871. – T. 4. – No. 9.

Correspondence of Empress Catherine II with Falconet. Text of letters to French, with translation into Russian. Collection of the Imperial Russian Historical Society. Volume 17. St. Petersburg, 1876. Electronic version - on the website of the Presidential Library upon request.

Shubinsky S.N. Historical essays and stories. SPb.: Type. M. Khan, 1869.

Ivanovsky, A. Conversations about Peter the Great and his employees. SPb.: type. Children's care homes. poor, 1872.

Drawing by A. P. Losenko from the Falconet monument to Peter the Great. P. Ettinger. Based on materials from the monthly for lovers of art and antiquity “Old Years”, March 1915.

Thank you, friends, for your attention to our publication. We would be very grateful for your feedback. In our next issues: the secrets of the Bronze Horseman revealed during the restoration, as well as the fascinating history of his pedestal - the “Thunder Stone”. You can view all our newspapers about St. Petersburg in the section Newspapers for the holidays by selecting the appropriate menu item there. We remind you that our partners in their organizations distribute our wall newspapers for free.

Yours Georgy Popov, site editor

On August 27, 2016, the premiere of the cartoon “The Bronze Horseman” took place at the “Chaika” cinema center, created by the children of the “CartoonChaika” studio based on the idea and under the direction of our friend Lena Pilipovskaya. In close contact with our project. An excellent educational cartoon in the Mustlook category!

Monument to the Bronze Horseman (Russia) - description, history, location. Exact address, phone number, website. Tourist reviews, photos and videos.

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The Bronze Horseman on Senate Square is not the only monument to Peter I in St. Petersburg, but, undoubtedly, the most famous, which has long become a symbol of the Northern capital. Already at the end of the 18th century, many urban legends and anecdotes were associated with him, and in the 19th century, poets of that time liked to mention the Bronze Horseman in their works.

Contrary to its name, the monument is not copper, but bronze. And the monument to Peter received its popular name thanks to Pushkin’s poem of the same name.

According to the idea of ​​Catherine II, who ordered the sculpture, and her consultants, Voltaire and Diderot, Peter was to appear in the solemn guise of a victorious Roman emperor with a staff and scepter in his hands. However, the French sculptor Etienne Falconet, invited to work on the monument, dared to argue with the crowned persons and showed the world a different Peter, without belittling either his military talents or his title as a wise ruler.

After 16 years of work, on August 7, 1782, according to the old style, an equestrian statue of the young king was solemnly installed on a huge pedestal. The monument was the first to be installed in the city square. Peter confidently sits on a rearing horse, covered with a bear skin. The animal represents the rebellious, ignorant people who submitted to the emperor. A huge snake was crushed by the horse’s hooves, symbolizing opponents of reforms and also serving as an additional support for the structure. The figure of the king himself expresses strength, desire and steadfastness. On the granite block, by order of Catherine the Great, a dedication was carved in two languages, Russian and Latin: “To Peter I Catherine II in the summer of 1782.”

On the granite block on which the monument is erected, by order of Catherine the Great, a dedication is carved in two languages, Russian and Latin: “To Peter I Catherine II in the summer of 1782.”

An interesting story is connected with the stone on which the monument is erected. It was found by the peasant Semyon Vishnyakov at a distance of about 9 km from the square. The Thunder Stone was delivered to the installation site of the monument using a device that was truly unique for that time, working on the principle of a bearing. Initially the block weighed about 1600 tons. Then, according to Falcone's design, it was hewn and given the shape of a wave, personifying the power of Russia as a maritime power.

History of the creation of the monument

And many more stories and tales still circulate around the emperor’s gesture. Peter's right hand is imperiously extended forward; with his left he firmly holds the reins. Some say the hand points down to the place where “the city will be founded.” Others believe that Peter is looking towards Sweden, the country with which he fought so long and stubbornly. In the 19th century, one of the most interesting versions was born. She claims that Peter's right hand is actually facing the Neva. He points his left elbow towards the Senate, which in the 19th century served as the Supreme Court. The interpretation of the gesture is as follows: it is better to drown yourself in the Neva than to have a trial in the Senate. It was a very corrupt institution in those days.

Address: Senate Square, metro station "Nevsky Prospekt", "Admiralteyskaya".

The well-known Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin in the poem “The Bronze Horseman” became the author of several misconceptions.

Why copper? It is bronze, but as the saying goes, “believe what is written, for you cannot cut it out with an axe.”

“St. Petersburg is the window through which Russia looks to Europe,” but sources of mass knowledge such as school textbooks and the notorious Wikipedia, supported by official historians of all stripes and ranks, persistently broadcast: “Cut a window to Europe” - catchphrase from the poem by A. S. Pushkin “The Bronze Horseman”, which characterizes the founding of the city of St. Petersburg by Peter I - the first seaport of the Moscow state,” although a seaport never appeared in the city during the time of Peter I.

The only real seaport was and remains to this day in Kronstadt on the island of Kotlin. Due to a section of shallow water 27 nautical miles (47 km) long, St. Petersburg was denied the right to be called a “door” (port - gate, door); at that time it remained just a “window to Europe.”

Another misconception:

In the fifth note to the poem "The Bronze Horseman" Pushkin refers to Mitskevich's poem. And the lines from the poem “Monument to Peter the Great” literally translated sound like this:

„To the first of the kings who created these miracles,
Another queen erected a monument.
Already a king, cast in the image of a giant,
Sat on the bronze ridge of Bucephalus
And I was looking for places to ride on horseback.
But Peter cannot stand on his own land..."

For some reason, Mickiewicz mentions the name of Alexander the Great’s favorite horse, although it was known that Peter’s favorite horse was Lizeta, which was later made into a stuffed animal.

The censor of the poem “The Bronze Horseman” was Tsar Nicholas I himself. For some reason, he forbade the use of the word “idol” in relation to Peter I.
Maybe the tsar knew that the rider on the horse (but not Peter) was really once a people's idol?

Here's another coincidence.

The horse stepped on the snake with its right hind leg, everything is written like a book. And the position of the hand and head is not so difficult to edit. Not all monuments contain a cloak (cape) from the time of A. the Great. And this is a completely different hero

St. George the Victorious

And here is the “Peter’s” altyn (three kopecks).

But this is a penny of Ivan V Vasilyevich the Terrible.

And here is the seal of Ivan III, known to everyone on Wikipedia.

The legend invented by the guides about lightning striking a stone is also confusing. The name Thunder Stone itself allegedly appeared due to a lightning strike. More precisely, lightning is used to explain the front granite attachment to the pedestal, which seems to form a very intricate crack.

Surprisingly, the crack runs exactly along the boundary of different color (chemical and crystalline) structures of granite, and the strip of enlarged inclusions also ends abruptly and unnaturally at this boundary.

And most importantly... The monument has not one such granite liner, there are two of them, front and back.

Look here

The historical version says: I was laying a stone, lightning struck it, and then, as in a fairy tale, the crack that ran through changed the color, structure, orientation of the crystals, even the grain size... Do you believe it? If yes, then the whole fictitious history of the city’s construction is also true.

The added fragment looks more like the result of restoration after the destruction of the front and back parts of the monument's pedestal. The whole appearance of the pedestal, its treatment and the wavy slabs laid around it indicate that it once represented the crest of a wave, and not just a wild rock, but was destroyed.

It may have originally looked something like this:

The sharp chip of the stone at the front looks very unnatural next to the smooth features of the base; they look more like a sea wave without a crest.

In addition, the snake under the hoof looks more comical than symbolic.

Large scales are closer to dragons.

And a head without scales looks completely unnatural.

They were able to draw the details of the horse and rider meticulously, but with the snake it was a mess, maybe the snake was all Falcone had the strength for? Although, history says that he didn’t even cast the snake, it was made by Fyodor Gordeev.

From official sources: The model of the equestrian statue of Peter was made by the sculptor Etienne Falconet in 1768-1770. Peter's head was sculpted by his student, Marie-Anne Collot. According to Falconet's design, the snake was sculpted by Fyodor Gordeev. The casting of the statue was carried out under the direction of master Emelyan Khailov and was completed in 1778. Architectural and planning decisions and general management were carried out by Yu. M. Felten.

Until 1844, no one knew that Catherine gave this monument to Peter I, in the painting by N.M. Vorobyov. There is no trace of any inscription.

One more thing is surprising.

Peter on this monument, as well as on the other one, which we will consider below, sits without pants, in a Roman toga, and neither the Russian nobility nor the ship's masters ever wore such clothes. The position of the Bronze Horseman's hand also seems familiar.

only this is Marcus Aurelius in Rome.

Why does the sovereign-emperor need such an outfit? It’s not fitting for the Russian Autocrat to show off without trousers! Moreover, Peter is sitting on a horse without stirrup , and what does history say: the stirrup was invented in the 4th century. From this we can clearly conclude that this rider lived no later than the 4th century, and the statue should also have been cast much earlier than in the 18th century.

And when did the sovereign indulge in such weapons?

In the time of Peter 1, the army did not have swords, there were sabers.

Hence the question: who armed the bronze horseman with a sword?

Doesn't Bucephalus' stance remind you of anything?

This is how A. Macedonian was always depicted on horseback.

And here is the monument to Alexander the Great in Skopje

The sword, the horse, the cloak, the harness on the horse, and the rider’s clothes themselves don’t remind you of anything?

But the real Peter 1,

it was in this form that he had to sit on his beloved mare Lisette.

"The Bronze Horseman" from a different angle.

(not Pushkin, for sure)

Shining like bronze over the Neva,

And the clouds are tugging at your loins,

He is full of rainwater,

The land here is foreign to him.

The granite shackles itch,

Far from enemy columns...

And Macedonian Sasha again

Goes to ancient Babylon.

From the notes of Backmeister Ivan Grigorievich, bibliographer of Catherine the Great, " she already had a sculpture image of PETER the Great", which is still preserved to this day, however, it did not satisfy the desired intention.

An ordinary base, on which most of these statues are mounted, does not mean anything and is not capable of arousing a new reverent thought in the soul of the viewer. The monument erected by Catherine had to correspond to her dignity in the noblest and most majestic manner.

The chosen base for the sculptured image of the Russian hero should be a wild and inaccessible stone on which is represented he is galloping on a horse with his right hand outstretched . A new, daring and expressive thought!

The stone itself, as a decoration, should remind of the state of the state at that time and of the difficulties that its creator had to overcome in achieving his intentions. How perfectly the chosen allegory resembles its subject is proven by the fact that PETER the Great had a seal on which he was depicted as a stonecutter , carving a statue of a female person from stone, that is, Russia.

The calm position of the rider depicts the undaunted courage and spirit of the hero, who feels his majesty and is not afraid of any danger. The gallop of a furious horse reaching the top of a stone mountain shows the speed of his affairs and the successful success in the changes brought about by his tireless work in his power.

The right outstretched hand is a sign of the commanding one, the Father of the Fatherland, who blesses his faithful subjects and cares about the well-being of his possessions. " - this is a quote from the "Historical news about the sculptured equestrian image of Peter the Great, composed by the collegiate assessor and librarian Imp. Academy of Sciences by Ivan Backmeister / Translated by Nikolai Karandashev. - SPb.: Type. Schnora, 1786". The original text was in German.

What this text says, it says that the monument apparently tilted (or even fell), as they say, was in disrepair, which is why it was sent for restoration, as a result of which it was subject to minor alterations, namely: head and right hand sawed off and soldered completely new parts of a different shape to it.

Here is a fictional version for posterity, which fits so well into academic work.

Excerpt from Falconet's letter to Catherine II:

Author Kaganovich A. The Bronze Horseman. History of the creation of the monument. - 2nd ed., add. - L.: Art, 1982. p.150. Quite a “suitable document” for posterity, who may have all sorts of questions about the presence of a seam in the area of ​​the head and shoulder on the solid casting of the monument...

The text under this picture also speaks for itself.

The pedestal also needed restoration, the parts that had fallen off needed to be renewed, a large piece at the front and a smaller piece at the back.

I was very puzzled by another incident, see for yourself

His famous cocked hat would have been more suitable for the Russian Emperor; he not only did not wear laurel wreaths, but during his lifetime he did not allow paintings of himself in this form.

So is it Peter on the horse or not Peter?

Who do they still like to portray this way all over the world?

Let's remember the story: In 1798, when Napoleon I captured Malta during an expedition to Egypt, the knights of the order turned to the Russian Emperor Paul I with a request to assume the rank of Grand Master of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, to which the latter agreed.

At the very end of 1798, Russian Emperor Paul I was proclaimed Grand Master of the Order of Malta. So this is what I’m leading to: at the end of the 17th century the monument to A. Macedonian disappeared, and in the middle of the 18th century a renewed monument to Peter 1 appeared.

Or maybe before the update it looked exactly like in the picture above? One more nuance, this warrior in Roman armor does not kill a snake, as we are used to, but a griffin - a symbol of Great Tartary.

Falconet, who had never before had to carry out such work himself, refused to finish the monument himself and waited for the arrival of the French master B. Ersman. The foundry worker, accompanied by three apprentices, arrived on May 11, 1772, having with him everything necessary to guarantee success: “earth, sand, clay...”.

However, the long-awaited master was unable to fulfill the sculptor’s demands and was soon fired, at Felten’s insistence. Ersman simply refused to engage in the task assigned to him. From that moment on, all preparatory work for casting was carried out by Falconet himself.

To assess the tension of the situation and the relationships of the characters, you need to cite the sculptor’s letter dated November 3, 1774 to Catherine II, appealing to her patronage:

“Most Gracious Empress, at the beginning of last month Mr. Betskoy ordered me, through Felten, to write my demands regarding the completion of the casting (here one should read “alterations”) of the statue, although this formality seemed unnecessary to me, nevertheless I immediately sent the letter from which I am enclosing I sent you a copy, and since then I have not received a response.

Without your august patronage, I am in the power of a man who hates me more every day, and if Your Majesty does not want to see me anymore, then I would have to live here worse than any stranger who finally finds a patron ... "

This is what Falcone himself wrote about the monument: “My monument will be simple... I will limit myself only to the statue of this hero, whom I do not interpret him either as a great commander or as a winner , although he was, of course, both.

The personality of the creator-legislator is much higher...” Here's the score "great commander and winner" Falcone clearly let it slip.

To ensure the authenticity of the design, on one of the folds of the Bronze Horseman’s cloak, the sculptor engraved the inscription “Sculpted and cast by Etienne Falconet, a Parisian in 1778.”

These were the passions that raged then, but the attempt to falsify the origin of the monument, thanks to Pushkin’s poem of the same name, was a hundred percent successful.

ZigZag

Description

The Bronze Horseman monument has long been associated with the city of St. Petersburg; it is considered one of the main symbols of the city and the Neva River.

Bronze Horseman. Who is depicted on the monument?

One of the most beautiful and famous equestrian monuments in the world is dedicated to the Russian Emperor Peter I.

In 1833, the great Russian poet Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin wrote famous poem“The Bronze Horseman”, which gave the second name to the monument to Peter I on Senate Square.

The history of the creation of the monument to Peter I in St. Petersburg

The history of the creation of this grandiose monument dates back to the era of the reign of Empress Catherine II, who considered herself the successor and continuer of the ideas of Peter the Great. Wanting to perpetuate the memory of the reformer Tsar, Catherine orders the erection of a monument to Peter I. Being a fan of European ideas of enlightenment, the fathers of which she considered the great French thinkers Diderot and Voltaire, the Empress instructs Prince Alexander Mikhailovich Golitsyn to turn to them for recommendations for choosing a sculptor who is capable would be to erect a monument to Great Peter. The meters recommended the sculptor Etienne-Maurice Falconet, with whom on September 6, 1766, a contract was signed to create an equestrian statue, for a rather small fee - 200,000 livres. To work on the monument, Etienne-Maurice Falconet, who by that time was already fifty years old, arrived with a young seventeen-year-old assistant, Marie-Anne Collot.

Etienne-Maurice Falconet. Bust by Marie-Anne Collot.

For Empress Catherine II, the monument was represented by an equestrian statue, where Peter I was supposed to be depicted as a Roman emperor with a staff in his hand - this was a generally accepted European canon, with its roots going back to the times of glorification of the rulers of Ancient Rome. Falconet saw the statue differently - dynamic and monumental, equal in its inner meaning and plastic solution to the genius of the man who created the new Russia.

The sculptor’s notes remain, where he wrote: “I will limit myself only to the statue of this hero, whom I do not interpret either as a great commander or as a winner, although he, of course, was both. The personality of the creator, legislator, benefactor of his country is much higher, and this is what needs to be shown to people. My king does not hold any rod, he extends his beneficent right hand over the country he is traveling around. He rises to the top of the rock that serves him as a pedestal - this is an emblem of the difficulties he has conquered."

Today, the Bronze Horseman monument, which is known all over the world as a symbol of St. Petersburg - the emperor with an outstretched hand on a rearing horse on a pedestal in the form of a rock, was absolutely innovative for that time and had no analogues in the world. It took a lot of work for the master to convince the main customer of the monument, Empress Catherine II, of the correctness and grandeur of his ingenious solution.

Falcone worked on the model of the equestrian statue for three years, where main problem The master had a plastic interpretation of the horse's movement. In the sculptor’s workshop, a special platform was built, with the same angle of inclination that the pedestal of the “Bronze Horseman” should have had, and riders on horses flew up onto it, rearing their horses. Falcone carefully observed the movements of the horses and made careful sketches. During this time, Falcone made many drawings and sculptural models of the statue and found exactly the plastic solution that was taken as the basis for the monument to Peter I.

In February 1767, at the beginning of Nevsky Prospect, on the site of the Temporary Winter Palace, a building was erected for the casting of the Bronze Horseman.

In 1780, the model of the monument was completed and on May 19, the sculpture was opened for public viewing for two weeks. Opinions in St. Petersburg were divided - some liked the equestrian statue, others were critical of the future most famous monument to Peter I (the Bronze Horseman).

An interesting fact is that the emperor’s head was sculpted by Falconet’s student Marie-Anne Collot; Catherine II liked her version of the portrait image of Peter I and the empress awarded the young sculptor a lifelong pension of 10,000 livres.

The pedestal of the “Bronze Horseman” has a separate history. According to the author of the monument to Peter I, the pedestal was supposed to be a natural rock, shaped like a wave, symbolizing Russia's access to the sea under the leadership of Peter the Great. The search for a stone monolith began immediately with the start of work on the sculptural model, and in 1768 a granite rock was found in the Lakhta region.

It is known that the peasant Semyon Grigorievich Vishnyakov reported the discovery of the granite monolith. According to a legend that existed among local population, once upon a time a granite rock was struck by lightning and split it, hence the name “Thunder Stone”.

To study the suitability of the stone for the pedestal, engineer Count de Lascari was sent to Lakhta, who proposed using a solid granite massif for the monument, and he also made calculations for the transportation plan. The idea was to build a road in the forest from the location of the stone and move it to the bay, and then deliver it by water to the installation site.

On September 26, 1768, work began to prepare for moving the rock, for which it was first completely dug up and the broken off part was separated, which was to serve as the pedestal of the monument to Peter I (the Bronze Horseman) in St. Petersburg.

In the spring of 1769, the “Thunder Stone” was installed on a wooden platform using levers and the road was prepared and strengthened throughout the summer; when frosts hit and the ground froze, the granite monolith began to be moved towards the bay. For these purposes, a special engineering device was invented and manufactured, which was a platform resting on thirty metal balls, moving along copper-lined grooved wooden rails.

View of the Thunder Stone during its transportation in the presence of Empress Catherine II.

On November 15, 1769, the movement of the granite colossus began. While moving the rock, 48 craftsmen cut it, giving it the shape intended for the pedestal. These works were supervised by stone mason Giovanni Geronimo Rusca. The movement of the block aroused great interest and people specially came from St. Petersburg to watch this action. On January 20, 1770, Empress Catherine II herself came to Lakhta and personally observed the movement of the rock, which was moved 25 meters during her reign. By her decree, the transport operation to move the “Thunder Stone” was marked with a minted medal with the inscription “Like daring. January 20, 1770.” By February 27, the granite monolith reached the shore of the Gulf of Finland, from where it was supposed to travel by water to St. Petersburg.

On the shore side, a special dam was built across the shallow water, extending nine hundred meters into the bay. To move the rock through the water, a large flat-bottomed vessel was made - a pram, which moved with the help of the force of three hundred oarsmen. On September 23, 1770, the ship moored on the embankment near Senate Square. On October 11, the pedestal for the Bronze Horseman was installed on Senate Square.

The casting of the statue itself took place with great difficulties and failures. Due to the complexity of the work, many foundry masters refused to cast the statue, while others asked too high a price for production. As a result, Etienne-Maurice Falconet himself had to study foundry and in 1774 began casting the Bronze Horseman. According to manufacturing technology, the statue should be hollow from the inside. The whole complexity of the work lay in the fact that the thickness of the walls in the front part of the statue had to be thinner than the thickness of the walls in the rear part. According to calculations, the heavier rear part gave stability to the statue, which had three points of support.

It was possible to make the statue only from the second casting in July 1777; work on its final finishing continued for another year. By this time, relations between Empress Catherine II and Falcone had deteriorated; the crowned customer was not happy with the delay in completing work on the monument. To complete the work as quickly as possible, the empress appointed watchmaker A. Sandots to assist the sculptor, who began the final chasing of the surface of the monument.

In 1778, Etienne-Maurice Falconet left Russia without regaining the empress's favor and without waiting for the grand opening of the most important creation in his life - the monument to Peter I, which the whole world now knows as the Bronze Horseman monument in St. Petersburg. This monument was the last creation of the master; he did not create another sculpture.

The completion of all work on the monument was supervised by architect Yu.M. Felten - the pedestal was given its final shape, after installing the sculpture, under the hooves of the horse, a design designed by the architect F.G. Gordeev, sculpture of a snake.

Wanting to emphasize her commitment to Peter’s reforms, Empress Catherine II ordered the pedestal to be decorated with the inscription: “Catherine II to Peter I.”

Unveiling of the monument to Peter I

On August 7, 1782, exactly on the centenary of Peter I’s accession to the throne, it was decided to coincide with the grand opening of the monument.

Opening of the monument to Emperor Peter I.

Many citizens gathered on Senate Square, foreign officials and high-ranking associates of Her Majesty were present - everyone was awaiting the arrival of Empress Catherine II to open the monument. The monument was hidden from view by a special canvas fence. For the military parade, guards regiments were lined up under the command of Prince A.M. Golitsyn. The Empress, in ceremonial attire, arrived in a boat along the Neva, and the people greeted her with applause. Rising to the balcony of the Senate building, Empress Catherine II gave a sign, the veil covering the monument fell and the figure of Peter the Great appeared before the enthusiastic people, seated on a rearing horse, triumphantly extending his right hand and looking into the distance. The guards regiments marched in parade along the Neva embankment to the beat of drums.

On the occasion of the opening of the monument, the Empress issued a manifesto on forgiveness and the grant of life to all those sentenced to execution; prisoners who had languished in prison for more than 10 years for public and private debts were released.

A silver medal with the image of the monument was issued. Three copies of the medal were cast in gold. Catherine II did not forget about the creator of the monument; by her decree, Prince D. A. Golitsyn presented the gold and silver medals to the great sculptor in Paris.

The Bronze Horseman witnessed not only the celebrations and holidays that took place at its foot, but also the tragic events of December 14 (26), 1825 - the Decembrist uprising.

To celebrate the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg, the Monument to Peter I was restored.

Nowadays, as before, this is the most visited monument in St. Petersburg. The Bronze Horseman on Senate Square often becomes the center for city celebrations and holidays.

Information

• Architect

  Yu. M. Felten

• Sculptor

  E. M. Falcone

Contacts

• Address

  St. Petersburg, Senate Square

How to get there?

• Metro

  Admiralteyskaya

• How to get there

  From the stations "Nevsky Prospekt", "Gostiny Dvor", "Admiralteyskaya"
  Trolleybuses: 5, 22
  Buses: 3, 22, 27, 10
  to St. Isaac's Square, then walk to the Neva, through the Alexander Garden.