"How bright, how emerald-dark

In the shade of its dense gardens,

And how shining, and how transparent

Is the water-dripping Peterhof."

Pyotr Vyazemsky

By the order of Emperor Paul I in 1801, the construction of the famous fountain colonnades in the Lower Park in front of the Grand Palace began, later named the Voronikhin Colonnades.

The project of the colonnades was designed and all construction works were supervised by A.N. Voronikhin. The construction was carried out by the artel of Grigory Kopylov, brother-in-law of Sukhanov. Samson Sukhanov was appointed as the "overseer," who supervised the workers and personally performed various subcontracted tasks with the owner. It was there that Sukhanov became acquainted with and gained great trust from Voronikhin.

In 1801, Grigory Kopylov undertook three contracts. The first contract was signed in winter for the "repair" of the plinths for the colonnades and stairs with polished steps made from "wild sea stone," the "edges of the pools in front of the gazebo windows," and the "pedestals under the columns and pilasters." At the beginning of summer, contractor Kopylov pledged to refurbish eight old marble columns with bases and capitals, taken from the dismantled Round Gazebo at the Pink Field in Tsarskoye Selo, and to produce twelve new columns from Serdobol granite, including their bases and capitals. In addition, he committed to carve cornices, balustrades, fountain basins, and pools from "Pudov stone," as well as "platforms" for the floor from "Putilov slabs." At the end of summer, Grigory Kopylov undertook the obligation "to carry out carpentry, joinery, masonry, and plastering work for two colonnades in Peterhof."

Beyond these contracts, by order of the President of the Academy of Arts Stroganov, Kopylov's artel quickly carved eight lion figures from "wild sea stone" based on models by sculptor I.P. Prokofiev. In 1803, the fountain colonnades in the form of open galleries ending with rectangular pavilion-gazebos were constructed. The entrances to the galleries were decorated with granite lions placed on either side of the stairs. For the magnificent project and its realization, Voronikhin was awarded the title of architect. Contemporaries were enchanted by the exquisite beauty of the colonnades.

Svinin in his book "Memorable Places of Saint Petersburg and Its Surroundings": "...Built in the Lower Garden opposite the terrace on which the palace stands, are two colonnades made of Pudov stone on a granite foundation; at both ends of each are gilded domes with spires, from which water jets, irrigating the domes and then cascading into the basin; this produces a wonderful effect on the imagination when sitting under the gallery roof and seeing the clear, bright sky before you, while above your head you hear the sound of pouring rain."

Sources:

https://peterhofmuseum.ru/objects/peterhof/voronihinskiye_kolonnadi

https://к-я.рф/tag/voronixinskie-kolonnady/