Summer Garden

(Letnii sad), the oldest garden in Leningrad, laid out in 1704 by the architects J. B. Leblond, M. G. Zemtsov, and I. Matveev (gardeners included J. Roosen and I. Surmin). The Summer Palace of Peter I is located in the garden. The palace, which was built between 1710 and 1714 by the architect D. Trezzini (with the participation of A. Schliiter, N. Michetti, and M. G. Zemtsov), was made into a museum of history in 1925. The Summer Garden is bounded by the Field of Mars and the Fontanka, Neva, and Moika rivers. Formerly the site of assemblies, court festivities, and receptions, the garden is now a recreational area for the residents of Leningrad.

The Summer Garden has a strictly geometric plan and has an area of approximately 11.5 hectares. It is decorated with marble statuary (primarily from the early 18th century), including 79 mythological statues, full-length sculptured portraits, and busts by P. Baratta, D. Groppelli, P. Groppelli, A. Tarsia, D. Bonazza, and others. Two pavilions were built in the garden in the 19th century—the Coffee House (1826, architect K. I. Rossi) and the Tea House (1827, architect L. I. Charlemagne). In 1855 a monument to I. A. Krylov was unveiled (bronze and granite, sculptor P. K. Klodt); the statue’s pedestal is decorated with reliefs depicting figures from Krylov’s fables (based on drawings by A. A. Agin). A cast-iron grille with a serene row of granite pillars (1771-84, architects Iu. M. Fel’ten and P. E. Ego-rov) separates the garden from the Neva embankment. The regular pattern of the fence is animated by gilded bronze ornaments. This grille is a masterpiece not only of Russian art but of world art.