Description of the attraction
Birch Gate - a gate on the eastern border of the Palace Park, built at the end of the 18th century. designed by the architect V. Brenna and are his best creation in the Gatchina Park. In terms of their architectonics, they have no analogues among other palace and park buildings in the suburbs of St. Petersburg. The Birch Gate is the eastern entrance to the park. In addition, they are included in the ensemble of the English Garden, forming together with the Birch House and the adjacent territory "Birch Plot".
The gate composition consists of three parts. The bulk of the structure is created by two symmetrical, rectangular pavilions, which play the role of pylons framing the arched passage and supporting the upper tier of the gate. The upper part of the pavilions is crowned with cornices and platforms located above. In the pavilions there are rooms that are illuminated by windows on the front facades of the building. The entrances to the pavilions are located in the passage, on the inner side of the gate. The outer facades of the gate have semicircular niches, where, according to the architect, the statues should have stood.
The architectural solution of the gate is close in style to the architecture of Ancient Rome. The structure creates the impression of monumentality and triumphality due to the proportions of the structure as a whole and the ratio of its constituent elements. The building's height and width of the same size create a feeling of stability and inviolability, and the monumentality of the building is emphasized, as it were, by an arch sandwiched between massive pavilions.
Particular expressiveness due to the play of light and shadow is given by far-out cornices and deeply cut niches. This effect is also emphasized by the relief panels on the walls of the building. The birch gates are made of Pudost stone, which, due to its color and texture, focuses on the architectonics of the building, performing the rhythmic division of its elements: panels, friezes, enhancing the opposition of the carried and supporting structures and optically emphasizing the elasticity of the span.
The original design of the architect was different from the constructed gate. The project of the Birch Gate has survived to this day, 1790s. The main difference is in the more intense sculptural decor. Sculptures of Mars and Bellona were supposed to be installed in the niches. Instead of figured panels above the niches, sculptural medallions should have been tied with garlands. In the upper part of the pylons there should have been grooves, above the arched vault - bas-reliefs of the flying geniuses of victory, on the frieze - compositions from antique captured weapons. The gate was supposed to be crowned with a sculpture of the goddess Nike on an oval pedestal.
The birch gate was built in 1795-1798. They were built by Giovanni Visconti, a stone master. The contract for the construction of the Birch Gate in the English Garden near the Birch House was concluded with a local merchant Martyan Vorobyov on January 24, 1795. On April 30, the local builder Kiryan Plastinin, a well-known participant in the construction of other Gatchina attractions, was attracted to the construction. The construction was supposed to be completed on September 1, 1795, but the extraction and subsequent processing of the stone lasted until 1797. By the end of 1797, the gate had already been built. But their finishing lasted until 1798.
The fenced upper platforms of the guardhouse were designed and used as one of the observation points of the Gatchina park. From here there was a view of the White Lake and the territory adjacent to the gate.
The platforms above the side pavilions were covered with iron roofs in 1843. This significantly changed the overall appearance of the gate. At the same time, the stairs were demolished, which led to the observation platforms of the upper part of the guardrooms from the inner premises of the gate structure. The premises were used as a warehouse for gardening tools.
In 1881, next to all the gates of the Palace Park, according to the project of the architect Ludwig Frantsevich Shperer, including, and next to the Birch Gate, red brick guardhouses were built.
Initially, the Birch Gate was called "the gate at the Birch House" because it was located not far from the previously built Birch House. In the middle of the 19th century. their name was changed to "Big Stone Gate", and now their common name sounds like "Birch Gate".
After the Great Patriotic War, restoration and conservation work was carried out on the Birch Gate.
