Narva Gates in St. Petersburg: address, history of creation, photo

Going to St. Petersburg, many want to get acquainted with the traditional sights of this city. Of course, there are a lot of monuments of cultural heritage, however, some of them deserve special attention. One of these objects is the Narva Gate. They are not as well known as many other sights of St. Petersburg, but nevertheless are of particular interest from the point of view of the culture and history of the city and even the whole country. In the article there will be a talk about the history of this cultural object, about how it looks, as well as some interesting facts about it.

Narva Gates in St. Petersburg: description and general information

So, we already know that this wonderful facility is located in the center of St. Petersburg. The architectural building is made in Empire style. The Narva Gates were created in 1827-1834. Their construction was conducted for several years. The main goal of the creation of the object is to perpetuate the memory of the participants in the war of 1812.

A lot of specialists were involved in the work on the construction. The result is a remarkable monument, which has survived to this day. Here you can always see a lot of tourists, because the Narva Gates in St. Petersburg are listed in many guidebooks. In addition, it is impossible not to pay attention to them, being nearby. Due to their fairly large size, they are clearly visible in the middle of the rest of the city's landscape. For example, the height of the object reaches more than 30 meters, width - 28 meters. The width of the gate is 8 meters. Its height is 15. Thus, you can be sure that their dimensions are really significant.

How did the cultural object appear?

Now we need to talk about how this remarkable architectural monument was built. Naturally, many people (both tourists and local residents) are interested in such a grandiose object of cultural heritage, as the Narva Gates in St. Petersburg. The history of their creation is interesting and instructive.

Initially, they were erected in order to meet the Russian military forces, which returned in 1814 from Europe. Then the gates were built of wood according to the design of the architect Quarenghi and decorated with some details. They were located on the Narva outpost. The building was erected very quickly - all the work was done in a month.

The decorative elements were a chariot drawn by horses. The arch was decorated with figures of Roman soldiers. However, in this performance the Narva gates did not last long. After a while they fell into decay. Nevertheless, everyone understood their importance and importance, so a decision was made to create a new object from other materials, as well as to slightly change its location.

Conversion of gates

Thus, we considered the question of how this cultural object appeared, for what purposes it was decided to build it. A new project, according to which it was decided to rebuild the Narva Gates, was created by another architect - Stasov. There was no fundamental difference between the two monuments, since the design of the building itself had not changed.

After the project was approved, in 1827 the construction of new gates began. The main difference from the old object was that the construction of the monument was built of bricks, then it was plated with copper sheets. Sculptural details adorning the gates were also created by their copper sheets. Now they looked like a six horses and a figure of Glory. In addition, here you can see figures depicting the ancient Russian heroes.

It is interesting that many specialists pay great attention to the monument. They argue that the gate has a lot of differences from other objects of this time. Among the features most often note the rigor and simplicity of the design, as well as the lack of too complex images used to create the sculptural group.

Restoration of the object

So, we got acquainted with the process of creating such a remarkable monument as the Narva Gates in St. Petersburg. History, however, does not end there. No doubt, for some time the gates pleased all visitors with their beautiful views. But a few years after the creation of copper began to deteriorate under the influence of the local climate. At the end of the XIX century, a decision was made on restoration. Already in 1870-1877, work began to restore the appearance. Copper sheets have decided to replace with iron, but it only strengthened corrosion processes. Since there were rooms inside the gate, they decided to postpone a part of the archive of the city Duma.

In 1917, the monument was badly damaged: it was set on fire. Then the archive completely burned, and the appearance and decorative elements that adorn the gates, deteriorated. In 1924 the monument was again decided to be repaired. However, the restoration did not have time to complete completely, since the war began.

Gates during the Great Patriotic War

At that time the gates were badly damaged again, they had a lot of holes, some parts of the decor were completely destroyed. The city was constantly bombed, as well as artillery shelling.

Through these gates troops left from Leningrad to the front. Also here were built special anti-tank fortifications. At the end of the war, through the same gates, the troops returned. Of course, the monument would not last long in such a bad condition, so after the war the object had to be restored several more times. In 1987, a museum dedicated to the war of 1812 opened here. Periodically you can see various exhibitions here.

Where is the monument?

So, we got acquainted with the history of this remarkable object of cultural heritage. Perhaps, many will want to visit the Narva Gates in St. Petersburg. Address of the monument: Stachek square, 1. It is quite easy to get here, as the gates are right in the center of the city. The nearest metro station, from which it is most convenient to reach the monument, is "Narva". Visit the site will be very interesting for another reason - the place where it is located, also has a rich history, which is worth reading and learning more. Nearby there are many cultural institutions that should be given attention.

What is now inside?

Thus, now we know where this unique monument is located. Of course, it is worth to tell in more detail about what is inside the gate. As already mentioned, there are several rooms, and quite extensive. Now the gate is one of the branches of the Museum of Urban Sculpture. Inside the rooms is the Museum of Military Glory. It is open to the public.

To get to the premises, you need to climb the two spiral staircases, which will be very interesting for all visitors. The museum began operating relatively long ago, in 1978. Since then, a lot of people have visited here: tourists and local residents, who are interested in the culture and history of the city. Thus, one of the city's most famous landmarks is the Narva Gates in St. Petersburg. The photo of the monument can be seen in many guidebooks and other travel materials.

Interesting facts about the Narva gate

Since the object has a rich and quite a long history, there are many interesting details related to it. For example, when the gates were built in a wooden version and began to deteriorate, none other than the hero of the war of 1812, General MA, stood up for them. Miloradovich. It was then that Emperor Nicholas I decided on the reconstruction.

Also of interest is the fact that the original object was not in the place where it is now. When building new gates already in stone, they were moved to the south from the previous location, to the bank of a river called Tarakanovka. Thus, we got acquainted with the wonderful Narva gate, their history, location and other interesting details.