Saint-Germain Garden, Liteyny Ave., 46, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191014
In the inner courtyard of the houses on Liteyny Prospect, there is a large garden. When you visit it for the first time, it is hard to believe that such an oasis exists just a few meters from a busy street. The garden has existed for more than a century and still holds many interesting artifacts. The outlines of the garden at what is now Liteyny, 46 began to appear back in the 19th century, but its modern appearance was shaped in the 1910s.
Since the beginning of the 18th century, the Preobrazhensky Regiment was quartered on this section of Liteyny Prospect. By the end of the century, the land plots began to be bought up, but the original owner of house 46 is not definitively known. According to some sources, it might have been Lieutenant Colonel of the Preobrazhensky Regiment Count Burkhard Christoph von Münnich.
In 1859, the house was significantly rebuilt according to the project of architect Alexander Pel, who purchased it for personal use. To this day, house number 46 is called Pel’s house.
The second major reconstruction of the house and garden is associated with the name Fyodor von Kruze. The plot passed into Kruze’s ownership in 1905, and a large reconstruction began. Later, the oil industrialist Pavel Gukasov invited architect Alexander Khrenov for the renovation. It was during this period that a fountain appeared in the garden, giving it the appearance we can enjoy today.
The garden on Liteyny is one of the few old inner-courtyard green spaces preserved in St. Petersburg. It received its unofficial name “Saint-Germain” due to its resemblance to French gardens.
In the French style, it was also called “Palais Royal” or “Belvedere.” All these names became attached to the place during the Soviet era.
It is said that the garden once witnessed performances by Fyodor Chaliapin and Anna Akhmatova. And in the early 20th century, Maxim Gorky visited his muse Maria Andreeva in the communal apartment here.
Later, one creative elite of Petersburg replaced another: in the 1960s and 70s, musicians, poets, and writers gathered again in the courtyard with the garden and fountain. Among those who visited were Joseph Brodsky, Sergey Dovlatov, Boris Grebenshchikov, Viktor Tsoi, and Konstantin Kinchev. This was largely because the garden was located near the “Saigon” café.
On the buildings in the courtyard, you can see three bas-reliefs with the head of Minerva in a Renaissance-style helmet, masks of satyrs on each facade, and Latin inscriptions. In the center stands a fountain, which has only recently returned to its rightful place.
But we want to draw your attention to the lamppost. Longtime residents of the house on Liteyny assure that this is one of the first lampposts in Petersburg. There are two of them around the courtyard perimeter; one is barely preserved, the other is in better condition.
The rare lamppost has a mechanical drive. The lamp was lit by a rope mechanism. The lantern was produced at the Franz Karlovich San-Galli cast iron foundry.
Also, on the courtyard walls of the houses, you can see three bas-reliefs with the head of Minerva in a Renaissance-style helmet, masks of satyrs on each facade, and Latin inscriptions. In the center stands a fountain, recently returned to its rightful place.
Elevators appeared at the entrances to the left and right of the courtyard entrance in the modern period, which significantly spoiled the building’s appearance. And the facade of one of the houses lost a satyr mask altogether due to the installation of a lift.
Sources:
https://www.fiesta.ru/spb/places/pyat-istoriy-sekretnogo-peterburgskogo-sadika-sen-zhermen/
https://petersburg24.ru/place/sad-sen-zhermen
