Description of the attraction
The Silvian Gate is one of the most remarkable buildings in the Palace Park. It is distinguished by structural clarity, poetry and poise. The construction of the gate dates back to 1792-1794. The author of the Silvian Gate is the architect V. Brenna; the construction of the gate was carried out under the direction of K. Plastinin.
The Sylvian Gate is like an invitation to Sylvia. Working on the project of the Sylvian Gate, Brenna probably proceeded from the fact that this is not a ceremonial triumphal structure, unlike the Birch, Admiralty Gate or the Mask portal, but the gate that opens the entrance to the mysterious depths of the forest is Sylvia. Consequently, from these considerations, the architect chose the composition, scale, interpretation of the sculptural and architectural decoration.
In this gate, the well-known classic construction is used, when the pylons flank the passage arch with a mascaron keystone and a low archivolt. The pylons are connected to each other by a smooth entablature, above which there is a profiled cornice. A triangular pediment with a profiled frame reinforces the composition. But, having chosen the classical compositional scheme, Brenna introduced his own details and nuances into this structure, which determined its originality.
The Silvian Gate does not have a frieze and a dedicated architrave. The pediment in this regard seems to be put on from above, which makes the gate massive and squat. The width of the gate is 7, 3 m, the height to the top of the pediment is 7, 6 m. This aspect ratio, which practically corresponds to a square, creates the impression of poise and power.
The generalization of the architectural forms of the Sylvian Gate corresponds to the finely adjusted details of the decorative and compositional design. The front side of the pylons, starting from the base, is distinguished by a wide frame of straight lines. The upper part of the arch, corresponding to the recesses at the corners of the pylons, is bordered by a double profiled plate, its ends, like brushes, hang down on the sides of the arch span. This artistic technique makes the Silvian Gate look like a frame of a painting with a landscape captured on it. This impression is further enhanced if you look at the gate from the side of the Palace Park, because from here you can see a copper plaque, which is mounted in the tympanum of the pediment. The inscription "Sylvia" is engraved on it, which from a distance looks like an inscription with a name on the frame of the picture.
The gate is decorated with a high-relief mask depicting the mythological forest dweller Sylvanas. It is both a keystone that marks the middle part of the archivolt bend and a symbol-symbol of the Gatchina Palace Park. With extraordinary skill and a sense of material, the master reproduced a wide, cheeky face with a low forehead, over which thick hair hangs in heavy curls, strangely spaced eyes, tightly compressed lips and a small curly beard. An unknown sculptor has put this decorative element into living imagery and spirituality. The expression of this mysterious face of the forest dweller is also surprising - aloof and concentrated. A fixed gaze that looks, as it were, through time and space. The Gatchina Forest Spirit Silvan is one of the inimitable works of decorative sculpture in the suburbs of St. Petersburg.
The architecture of the Silvian Gate is in perfect harmony with the stone wall of the park, built of rectangular blocks and completed with a slab protruding like a cornice. As in other structures of the Gatchina Park, the impression of it is enhanced by the texture of the Pudost stone and the rhythmic pattern of horizontal and vertical masonry seams.
The Sylvian gate, which is located in the middle of a stone wall, is both a "window" and a key to the composition: from them, the perspectives of three fanning alleys open up. The right one leads to the Birdhouse in the depths of the park, the middle one leads to the Farm, the left one leads to the Black Gate.
