Hermitage Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Hermitage Bridge is a bridge across the Winter Canal
Winter Canal
Winter Canal is a canal in Saint Petersburg, Russia, connecting Bolshaya Neva with Moika River in the vicinity of Winter Palace.The canal was dug in 1718-1719. Its length is only 228 metres, which makes it one of the shortest canals in the city...

 along Palace Embankment
Palace Embankment
The Palace Embankment or Palace Quay is a street along the Neva River in Central Saint Petersburg which contains the complex of the Hermitage Museum buildings , the Hermitage Theatre, the Marble Palace, the Vladimir Palace, the New Michael Palace and the Summer Garden.The street was laid out...

 in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...

, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

. The bridge constitutes part of the Hermitage
Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of the largest and oldest museums of the world, it was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and has been opened to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display,...

 and Winter Palace
Winter Palace
The Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian monarchs. Situated between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, adjacent to the site of Peter the Great's original Winter Palace, the present and fourth Winter Palace was built and...

 ensemble.

Ground location

The bridge is between buildings Hermitage theatre
Hermitage Theatre
The Hermitage Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia is one of five Hermitage buildings lining the Palace Embankment of the Neva River.The palatial theatre was built between 1783 and 1787 at the behest of Catherine the Great to a Palladian design by Giacomo Quarenghi...

 (32, Palace Embankment) and Old Hermitage (34, Palace Embankment).
Winter Canal through which will throw this bridge, proceeds between two islands: Winter Palace
Winter Palace
The Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian monarchs. Situated between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, adjacent to the site of Peter the Great's original Winter Palace, the present and fourth Winter Palace was built and...

 is on second Admiralty island (in the west), Hermitage theatre
Hermitage Theatre
The Hermitage Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia is one of five Hermitage buildings lining the Palace Embankment of the Neva River.The palatial theatre was built between 1783 and 1787 at the behest of Catherine the Great to a Palladian design by Giacomo Quarenghi...

 - on first Admiralty island (in the east).
Automobile movement on the bridge dense, is carried out on two strips - on one in each party.
Channel waters under the bridge flow in a direction from Neva
Neva River
The Neva is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. Despite its modest length , it is the third largest river in Europe in terms of average discharge .The Neva is the only river flowing from Lake...

 to Moyka, movement of courts on the channel unilateral - from Moyka to Neva.

The nearest station of the Saint Petersburg Metro
Saint Petersburg Metro
The Saint Petersburg Metro is the underground railway system in Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It has been open since November 15, 1955.Formerly known as the V.I...

 – "Gostini dvor"
Gostiny Dvor (Saint Petersburg Metro)
Gostiny Dvor is a station on the Nevsko-Vasileostrovskaya Line of the Saint Petersburg Metro. It was designed by architect C.G. Mayofis, E.S. Belyat, A.K. Andreyev, Ya.E. Moskalenko and C.P Schyukin and opened on November 3, 1967. It has two exits - one at the intersection between Griboyedov...

, an exit on Griboyedov Canal (1.2 km).

History

The original bridge was a three-span wooden drawbridge constructed in 1718-20 by Herman van Boles, immediately after the canal near the Winter Palace
Winter Palace
The Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian monarchs. Situated between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, adjacent to the site of Peter the Great's original Winter Palace, the present and fourth Winter Palace was built and...

 was completed. This bridge was narrow, allowing passage of only one cart at a time.

The permanent stone bridge was built in 1763-66, in conjunction with building of granite embankments of the Neva River
Neva River
The Neva is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. Despite its modest length , it is the third largest river in Europe in terms of average discharge .The Neva is the only river flowing from Lake...

.
Today, Hermitage Bridge remains the oldest stone bridge in Saint Petersburg.

Originally the arch of the bridge was built from brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...

 and limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 with granite exterior.
In 1934 it was replaced with the new monolithic hinge-free ferroconcrete arch, but the granite facade was preserved by the project of engineer A. D. Sapestein and architect K. M. Dmitriev, the adviser — professor G. P. Peredery.
In 1950, the original decor of ramps was restored.

Name

On April 20, 1738, the bridge received its first official name of Upper Embankment Bridge after the Upper Embankment street (today's Palace Embankment
Palace Embankment
The Palace Embankment or Palace Quay is a street along the Neva River in Central Saint Petersburg which contains the complex of the Hermitage Museum buildings , the Hermitage Theatre, the Marble Palace, the Vladimir Palace, the New Michael Palace and the Summer Garden.The street was laid out...

). However, this name didn't catch on. The name Winter Palace Bridge after the nearby Winter Palace
Winter Palace
The Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian monarchs. Situated between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, adjacent to the site of Peter the Great's original Winter Palace, the present and fourth Winter Palace was built and...

 started to circulate in the middle of 18 century. From the end of 18 century the bridge was renamed to Palace Bridge (not to be confused with the modern Palace Bridge
Palace Bridge
Palace Bridge is a road traffic and foot bascule bridge spanning the Neva River in Saint Petersburg between Palace Square and Vasilievsky Island. Like every other Neva bridge , it is drawn by night, making foot travel between various parts of the city virtually impossible...

). The current name was established in 1929. The Hermitage Bridge name came from the Hermitage Theater which was built by that time between Winter Canal and Winter Palace.
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