Sights of St. Petersburg: Sphinxes on the University Embankment

Near the building of the Academy of Arts, located on the Vasilievsky Island of the northern capital, is a cultural composition, which is one of the unofficial symbols of St. Petersburg. These are ancient sculptures, which are much older than the city itself on the Neva, - the Sphinxes on the University embankment. Their age, according to scientists, is three and a half thousand years.

In total, there are fourteen such statues in the city. But the Sphinxes on the University embankment are the most famous. They are popular not only among tourists who visit the city with great pleasure, but also for the citizens of St. Petersburg.

Sphinxes on the University embankment located, were discovered in 1820 during the excavation of the city of Thebes, which were conducted by an expedition led by the famous Greek Egyptologist Janis Atonazis with the money of the British Consulate. According to available information, these two monumental statues, made of pink granite, were on the west bank of the Nile near Colossi of Memnon and represented the "guard" of the tomb of Pharaoh Aminhotep III, who ruled Upper and Lower Egypt. Due to the fact that funds were allocated by Britain, Yanni (the nickname of the scientist) most of the finds should be given to the meeting of the British consul in this country - Henry Salt. There and directed our sphinxes. Salt moved the statues to Alexandria, closer to the seacoast, where they were seen hero of the Napoleonic War of 1812 by Andrei Muraviev, who immediately informed Nicholas of the first about the need to purchase statues. Europe in those years was carried away by Egyptology, so it was not difficult to persuade the autocrat. By order of the emperor from the treasury were allocated 64 thousand rubles, and the sphinxes were purchased. In May 1832, on a special fortified ship, they were delivered to St. Petersburg, the imperial capital.

Initially, it was not supposed that the sphinxes on the University embankment would adorn the city, there should have been other sculptures - the horses of Klodt. But by the decision of the architect K. Ton, who designed the embankment, by 1834 special pedestals weighing 23 tons each were erected on it, for which 62-ton Egyptian statues were erected. Later on each pedestal was inscribed an inscription with information about them.

The Sphinx is a mythological being. It's a lion with a human head. Each Sphinx on the University Embankment is a fine representative of the symbol of courage, wisdom and dignity, which are these animals. The profile of each resembles the profile of the king. The head, which is crowned with a crown, and the cape covers the shoulders, and the cobra flaunts on the forehead - a symbol of the protection of the pharaohs. On the neck of the statue are six-row beads, which are also a sign of power. On his chest - a medallion with the carved name Aminhotep III.

Sphinxes on the University embankment, photos of which are presented in the article, are a sample of the magnificent creativity of the ancient Egyptian stonecutters. Their image was captured not only in the works of artists. They devoted their poetry geniuses to literature.