Not far from the pergola is the Stone Bench of Catherine II, carved from a glacial boulder. On its surface, a partially faded inscription can be seen: “To the Great Sovereign Empress Catherine Alexeyevna, built for the Private Garden in the year 1762.”
This is a special place in the park, radiating an aura of antiquity and mysticism. Perhaps this feeling is illusory, created by the bench being surrounded by densely grown trees, and a spruce tree growing directly out of the boulder itself.
The bench-monument reminds us of the era when the majestic ensemble of Oranienbaum and the Empress’s Private Dacha were created.
Sources:
https://www.spb-guide.ru/kamennaya-skamya-ekateriny-oranienbaum.htm
https://bw4u.ru/welovelife/life/drevnyaya-kamennaya-skamya-ekateriny-ii-v-oranienbaume-so-starymi-nadpisyami/
