Description of the attraction
Sphinxes appeared in St. Petersburg at the height of the enthusiasm for ancient Egyptian attributes in the 19th century. In 1832, in front of the Academy of Arts on the University Embankment, it was decided to organize a wide pier. Her project was prepared by K. A. In tone. The main decoration of the pier should be the figures of bronze horses with tamers. All work was carried out in accordance with a unified design for the development of the University Embankment. But it turned out to be too expensive to cast sculptures from bronze, the approved estimate did not provide for such large expenses.
And in 1834. instead of the figures of horses, the University embankment was decorated with two granite sphinxes, which were found during excavations of ancient Egyptian Thebes.
The Sphinx is a monster with the body of a reclining lion and a human head, which is a symbol of the combination of mind and strength. The Egyptians attributed the power and strength of the gods to the Sphinxes.
The Sphinxes on the University Embankment are of the greatest historical and artistic value. They were found in the area of ancient Thebes by French archaeologists under the leadership of J.-B. Champollion. These sphinxes are about 3, 5 thousand years old. They are carved from syenite. They stood at the entrance to the temple for the Egyptian pharaoh Amenhotep III, whose portrait image repeats the heads of the sphinxes. The headdresses of the sphinxes are evidence that the pharaoh ruled over two kingdoms - Lower and Upper Egypt.
The city owes the purchase of sphinxes for the embankment in front of the Academy of Arts to A. N. Muravyov, a young Russian officer, who in 1830. went on a pilgrimage trip to holy places. In Alexandria, he saw one of the sphinxes dug up in Thebes and was eager to buy monumental statues for Russia. The stone statues cost 100,000 francs and required permission from the king to acquire them. While the officer's petition reached St. Petersburg, while the emperor was informed about him, and he, in turn, transferred it to the Academy of Arts for consideration, while the petition was approved, and the required document caught up with the traveling Nicholas I and he imposed his resolution, the sphinxes were practically bought France. But the July revolution happened, and France was not up to the purchase of historical values. Then Russia bought the Sphinxes for 64,000 rubles. They were brought to Russia on the sailing ship "Buena Speranza" ("Good Hope") in May 1832, here they were installed at the Academy of Arts in the Round Courtyard, where they remained until the creation of the pier near the walls of the Academy.
The Egyptian Sphinxes took their present place in 1834. During the transportation of the Sphinxes, their chins were chipped off with the false beards covering them. During the loading of one of the sphinxes, the cables broke, and he fell, breaking the side of the ship and the mast into chips. There was a deep rope mark on the sphinx's face, but during the last restoration it was repaired.
35 centuries ago, the sphinxes guarded the tomb of Amenhotep III. Their foreheads are decorated with cobras, who are the protectors and patrons of the pharaohs. The Sphinxes are silent witnesses of the high skill and tremendous work of unknown stonemasons of ancient Egypt. Both statues are covered with hieroglyphs, which are carved both on the chest of sphinxes and on cartouches, as well as a continuous strip along the lateral edges of granite slabs that serve as the bases of ancient sculptures. On each sphinx there are two inscriptions, which are variants of the titles of Pharaoh Amenhotep III. A complete translation of all these inscriptions was first performed in 1913 by a young Russian Egyptologist, future academician V. V. Struve.
In addition to the sphinxes, to strengthen the connection of this place with ancient Egypt, O. Montferrand proposed to build a statue of Osiris here. But this idea was rejected. The pier was decorated with bronze griffins and lamps, which were cast according to the models of Godet by P. P.
By the way, the sculptures of horses with tamers, which were originally supposed to be installed on the University embankment, were subsequently installed on the Anichkov bridge.
Until the 10s. XX century the descent to the Neva was used for unloading building materials from barges. In the 30s. firewood was unloaded on it. During the blockade, a protective canopy was erected over the sphinxes. The descent to the Neva was restored in 1947, and in 1958-60. were restored lost in the 19th century. bronze griffins. This project was carried out by I. N. Benois, G. F. Tsygankov, A. E. Polyakov.
The Sphinxes on Universitetskaya Embankment are an unofficial, but still a symbol of St. Petersburg, and a must-see place for guests of the city on the Neva.
