Historical and modern photos of Russia, Europe and St. Petersburg, tourist & historical places. Travel stories. - Part 38

Travel stories and photos

Petersburg-Bridges - Historical and modern photos of Russia, Europe and St. Petersburg., tourist & historical places. Travel stories.

Русская версия.

Bridges between Engneers’ castle and Palace square

Bridges between Engneers’ castle and Palace square

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

The disastrous flood of 1824, vividly described in Alexander Pushkin’s The Bronze Horseman, carried away or damaged a great many of the city’s timber bridges. This necessitated the construction of several new cast-iron and masonry spans in the late 1820s and the 1830s.

First cast-iron bridges

First cast-iron bridges

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges — 2 responses

With the introduction of iron as a building material, in the beginning of the nineteenth century, bridge construction in St. Petersburg entered a new phase. The first cast-iron city-type bridge appeared in 1806, at the intersection of Nevsky Prospekt and the Moika. In those days it was called the Green or Police Bridge.

Fontanka granite bridges

Fontanka granite bridges

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

In the 1780s work was begun on the granite facing of the embankments of the Fontanka, the widest , and longest southern branch of the Neva delta. In view of the heavy volume of shipping on the Fontanka a number of inclined ramps were constructed on its banks to facilitate the handling of freight.

Old Kolomna bridges

Old Kolomna bridges

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

West of the Kriukov Canal, between the Moika and Fontanka, lay an extensive area known in Old St. Petersburg since the middle of the eighteenth century as Kolomna.

Bridges over the Griboyedov canal

Bridges over the Griboyedov canal

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

The Griboyedov Canal, formerly known as Yekate-rininsky (Catherine) Canal, runs practically from beginning to end in the channel of what was once the river Krivusha. Its construction was begun in 1764 and completed in 1790.

Bridges over the Winter canal

Bridges over the Winter canal

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

One of the most charming spots of Old St. Petersburg is the Winter Canal (Zimniaya Kanavka), a miniature canal linking the Neva and Moika.

Bridges near the Summer gardens

Bridges near the Summer gardens

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

Down to the middle of the eighteenth century only timber was used in St. Petersburg for bridges and embankments. In the 1720s, it is true, Peter I did have a masonry embankment-the city’s first-built around a small boat basin in the Summer Gardens, next to the Summer Palace and the Fontanka.

St. Petersburg first bridges

St. Petersburg first bridges

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

St. Petersburg was founded on May 16 (27), 1703, when the corner-stone of the future Peter and Paul Fortress was laid on Hares’ (Zayachy) Island. Simultaneously the construction of timber dwellings started on the right bank of the Neva, on Gorodovoy Island which now forms part of the so-called Petrograd Side.

City of bridges

City of bridges

11 февраля 2007 — History of St. Petersburg bridges

If Saint-Petersburg is known as the City of Bridges, there is every reason for the name, for sixty-eight rivers, canals and creeks criss-cross it in all directions, cutting it up into forty-two islands, large and small.

Valaam, Russia

Valaam, Russia

11 февраля 2007 — HDR (HDRi) photos and tutorials

Valaam is an archipelago in the northern portion of Lake Ladoga, lying within the Republic of Karelia, Russian Federation. The total area of its more than 50 islands is 36 km². The largest island is also called Valaam. It is best known as the site of the Valaam Monastery and for its natural beauty. In […]