Description of the attraction
In 2003, on May 17, in St. Petersburg, restoration and restoration work was completed on the Ioannovsky bridge, which connects Zayachiy Island and the Peter and Paul Fortress with the Petrograd side. On the day of its official opening, a new monument was presented to the public - the Bunny, who escaped the flood. Since then, residents and guests of St. Petersburg consider him a happy talisman of the Ioannovsky Bridge. To see this pretty monument, you need to take the metro to Gorkovskaya station. From there, walk along Kamenoostrovsky prospect along or through the park. A little to the right, behind the park, there will be Ioannovsky Bridge, on one of the piles of which this sculpture stands.
The figurine of a hare, made of aluminum alloy, is rather small - only 58 centimeters. From above it is coated with titanium nitride, which protects it from corrosion.
Initially, they wanted to install the sculpture on one of the piles of the Kronverkskaya channel, the top of which is on the same level with the bridge. However, this idea was not implemented, since it turned out to be quite expensive. Then they wanted to put the sculpture on a support 8 meters from the coast, to the right of the Ioannovsky Bridge, but this was also refused. Then it was decided to place the sculpture of the animal on one of the piles protecting the Ioannovsky bridge during the ice drift on the Neva.
The monument was stolen several times. During the motorboat competitions, which are traditionally held near the Peter and Paul Fortress, a bunny figure was knocked down several times by boats. But every time she was returned. Over time, the sculpture was moved from one side of the bridge to the other.
The history of the appearance of the monument is connected with the legends about the founding of St. Petersburg, in the history of which there was a place for a little bunny. One of them says that, choosing a place for the future Peter and Paul Fortress, Tsar Peter I decided to explore the island, washed from all sides by the Neva. As soon as he stepped out of the boat onto the ground, a hare jumped at his feet. After this event, they began to call the island Hare. Another legend says that one day Peter I decided to check how the construction of the future citadel was going. He was extremely dissatisfied with the results. The king was terrible in anger, and the guilty were threatened with severe punishment. But suddenly a bunny jumped into the arms of the king. This softened Peter's heart, and the hare was given as a gift to the young princess.
There is also a more realistic version. To strengthen Russia's position in the Baltic, Tsar Peter ordered the construction of a defensive fortress on the Yenisaari Island, whose name is translated from Finnish as "Hare", to begin. You can also consider the bunny figurine as a reminder of the floods, which have been a real misfortune of St. Petersburg since its foundation - the animal stands on its hind legs, as if listening cautiously to something. However, the bunny is by no means scared. He is rather ready, if necessary, to stand up for himself.
The authors of the monument are architect S. Ya. Petchenko and sculptures by V. A. Petrovichev, famous for the creation of several city miniatures dedicated to animals. For example, he authored the monuments to the cat Vasilisa and the cat Yelisei on Malaya Sadovaya, the Kike frog at the University of Aerospace Instrumentation (formerly the Chesme Palace), the snail and the hippo at St. Petersburg State University.
The monument to the bunny was very much liked by the residents of St. Petersburg and the guests of the city, laying a kind of beginning to the installation of various funny monuments. Petersburgers believe that the monument to the bunny who escaped from the flood brings good luck and happiness. If you throw a coin in his direction, and it falls next to him, then all your innermost wishes will come true, and love, prosperity, a wonderful career will not keep you waiting.
