Anichkov Bridge
Location: Fontanka, Nevsky prospect
Distance from the hotel: 1,2 km / 0.8 miles
In front of the gorgeous Anichkov Palace built in the classical style on the Fontanka river embankment, which used to be the boundary of the city in the 18th century, there is one of the Petersburg landmarks and one of the most famous bridges in St. Petersburg - the Anichkov bridge.
Initially made of wood with several spans built on piles of supports lying just above the Fontanka River, the bridge was constructed in 1715-1716 according the decree of Peter the Great under the supervision of a military engineer M. Anichkov, but since the city was instantly growing and river traffic was increasing commensurately the bridge went through numerous reconstructions: in 1721 a new drawbridge with towers was created on this site; in the 1840's this design, especially the large towers, was already deemed unsuitable for the growing amount of traffic passing over Anichkov Bridge and in 1841-1842 a new stone bridge with three spans closed off with gently sloping arches was built under the leadership of Gotman. However, these arches were a continual source of problems and in 1906-1908 the bridge had to be once again reconstructed
Nowadays, the Anichkov bridge, adorning the city's main thoroughfare Nevsky Prospect, is a three-bay stone structure 54,6 meters long and 37,9 meters wide, boasting the rarest architectural and decorative qualities and featuring four equestrian groups of statues "The Steed Tamers". The spectacular sculptures of a man reconciling himself to a rearing horse created by Peter Klodt have become landmarks of the city and are tenderly cherished by the citizens - during World War II the statues were removed and sheltered from German artillery in the grounds of Anichkov Palace for safety and recently they were restored.
