Peterhof
Excerpted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Peterhof (Russian: Petergof, originally named
Peterhof: "Peter's Court"), is a series of palaces
and gardens, laid out on the orders of Peter the
Great, and sometimes called the "Russian Versailles".
It is located about twenty kilometres west and
six kilometres south of St. Petersburg, overlooking
the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea.
"Peterhof" may also refer to the adjacent
town of 82,000 people.
The palace-ensemble along with the city center
is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The dominant natural feature of Peterhof is a
sixteen-metre-high bluff lying less than a
hundred metres from the shore.
The so-called Lower Gardens (Nizhny Sad), at 1.02 sq
km comprising the better part of Peterhof's land area,
are confined between this bluff and the shore,
stretching east and west for roughly 200 metres.
The majority of Peterhof's fountains are contained
here, as are several small palaces and outbuildings.
East of the Lower Gardens lies the Alexandria Park
with 19th-century Gothic Revival
structures such as the Kapella.
Atop the bluff, near the middle of the Lower Gardens,
stands the Grand Palace (Bolshoi Dvorets).
Behind (south) of it are the comparatively small
Upper Gardens (Verhnyy Sad). Upon the bluff's
face below the Palace is the Grand
Cascade (Bolshoi Kaskad).
This and the Grand Palace are the centrepiece
of the entire complex.
At its foot begins the Sea Channel (Morskoi Kanal),
one of the most extensive waterworks of the Baroque
period, which bisects the Lower Gardens.
Peterhof and Sea Channel
Grand Peterhof Palace and the Grand Cascade
Peterhof: the Samson Fountain and Sea Channel
A portion of the Grand Cascade
Samson and the Lion
French style interior
The Upper Gardens of Peterhof
The Grand Throne Room
18th-century court dress
The East Chapel, one of a pair
flanking the central buildings
For a more information about
Peterhof see Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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