The first market appeared in St. Petersburg in 1705, two years after the city’s construction began. Before the major fire in 1710, it was located on Trinity Square, and afterward moved near the walls of the Peter and Paul Fortress. By the end of the 18th century, the capital had opened no fewer than six markets, each with its own unique characteristics. The increase in the number of markets was encouraged by the decree of June 28, 1782, which prohibited trading meat or fish anywhere else. This created a need to build more markets, so by the end of the 18th century, several more appeared: the Round, Nikolsky, and Hay Markets.
The Stone Round Market was built between 1785 and 1790, designed by architect D. Quarenghi. It had three identical facades decorated with sculptural bull heads. The market consisted of 21 stalls rented out to private traders. The unified complex with the Round Market included houses No. 1-3 on Round Lane and house No. 5 on the Moika River. Thanks to the location of this trading center, its clients were often members of the aristocracy. Therefore, traders kept their products not only fresh but also of the highest quality. The Round Market was considered an elite store in St. Petersburg. The Round Market was aimed at the aristocracy, owners of the best Petersburg restaurants, and successful entrepreneurs, so traders kept their products fresh and of first grade, while the Hay Market was considered popular. The “eldest” product was hay, which was brought not only from nearby villages but even from distant places, such as Novgorod, and was delivered to Hay Square year-round, especially intensively in winter.
The Round Market in St. Petersburg was built on the bank of the Moika River — which made it convenient to deliver goods by water. The market’s first name was Finnish, after the nearby Finnish Church. The entire area was then part of the Greek settlement of St. Petersburg.
On its territory, there was also a Catholic church and a Swedish church. The settlement was home to captains, boatswains, and ordinary sailors who had moved to St. Petersburg from various Mediterranean ports; this fact gave the entire historic district its name.
Later, the market was renamed the Food Market. The market was wooden, and in 1732 the Food Market was destroyed by fire; in its place, a square arose, which came to be called Apothecary Square. The square’s name came from the Main Court Pharmacy located at the corner of Apothecary Lane and Millionnaya Street.
The Stone Round Market was built between 1785 and 1790, designed by architect Giacomo Quarenghi. The stone market building is triangular in plan but with rounded edges, which determined its name, occupying the entire block between Round Lane, Apothecary Lane, and the Moika Embankment. It had three identical facades decorated with sculptural bull heads.
The market consisted of 21 stalls rented to private traders. Meat, vegetables, and milk were sold here, and warehouses were located on site. The unified complex with the Round Market included houses No. 1-3 on Round Lane and house No. 5 on the Moika River. Thanks to the location of the trading center, its clients were often aristocrats. Therefore, traders kept their products not only fresh but also of the highest quality. The Round Market was considered elite in St. Petersburg.
The history of the Round Market is connected with the name of Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin. The famous poet’s apartment at Moika 12 is located near the market, and the Pushkin family bought provisions, lamp oil, candles, wicks, and other goods at the market.
There are contemporary accounts that before his death, the poet requested berries: “Pushkin wished for his wife to feed him from her hands; he ate cloudberries with great pleasure and after each spoonful given by his wife, he said: ‘Ah, how good this is.’ It was to the Round Market that the servants were sent for the cloudberries requested by the dying poet.”
During the NEP era, the market stalls were rented by owners of small workshops and warehouses. At that time, there was a large book warehouse here. In the 1920s and 1930s, the Round Market was rebuilt. Strangely enough, the building was adapted for housing Soviet citizens. The outer arcade of the building was bricked up, the market’s outer gallery was closed with windows, a three-story annex was built in the southeast part, bypass corridors-galleries were added on the courtyard side, and parts of the longitudinal walls were demolished.
From 1967 to 1969, the Round Market underwent restoration. In Soviet times, it was called Khalturinsky.
In 1969, a decision was made to restore the building to its historical appearance. In 1970–1971, major repairs were carried out, but not all work was completed. After that, in the 1970s, the building housed the sewing enterprise “Leningrad Clothing.” The historic building was altered again — the entire outer arcade was fully glazed.
In 2010, the building became the headquarters of OAO Sovcomflot. The Round Market was restored and renovated on the outside.
Sources:
https://www.citywalls.ru/house4037.html
https://www.ibgroup.ru/news/2021/10/27/554/
