In Saint Petersburg, the first monument to Peter the Great was put up on Senate Square, which was later renamed the Decembrists Square. This monument, commemorated by Alexander Pushkin in his poem The Bronze Horseman, is one of the best samples of the world monumental sculpture and one of the symbols of Saint Petersburg.
The French sculptor Falconet was invited to Saint Petersburg to make the sketches for the monument. He came to Russia especially for that purpose. It took him three years to make the model of the equestrian statue. Falconet was advised to Catherine the Great by philosopher Didro, the friend of Falconet, in one of his letters to the Empress.
The monument depicts Peter the Great riding the horse. The laurel wreath on the head of the Emperor is the symbol of his glory and beginnings. The hand of Peter the Greats points to the Neva River, the Academy of Sciences and the Peter and Paul Fortress, which symbolizes the main goals of Peter's ruling: enlightenment, trading and military power. The pedestal for the monument is a solid piece of rock shaped as a wave, as it was Peter the Great who gained the access to the sea for Russia.
The huge granite boulder called the Thunder-stone serves as the pedestal. It was discovered in 1768 on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, in the vicinity of the Lakhta village. It took nine months to deliver the enormous monolith weighing 1,600 tons to the construction site. Four hundred people, using special devices, were first moving it by land, and further by water on the barge built especially for this purpose. During all the time of the long trip the masters-stonecutters shaped the rock according to the sculptor's design. The Empress Catherine II herself came to inspect the stone and the transportation devices several times. In October, 1770 the rock was put into its place. However, only 12 years later the monument was opened.
The casting of the statue began in 1775. When it was almost finished, the accident might have destroyed the results of all the efforts. The molten copper began to pour out of a crack that appeared in the mold, and caused the fire. The caster Yemelyan Khailov, who was in charge of the works, repaired the damage with a risk to his life and completed the casting. Sculptor Falconet later wrote: "We owe Khailov's bravery the success of the monument molding".
Russian sculptor Gordeyev molded the snake trampled by the horse, which is the third point of rest of the monument. It gives the whole composition steadiness and balance and symbolizes the obstacles Peter the Great had to overcome during his reforms.
The bronze head of Peter the Great was performed by Falconet's apprentice Mari Collot. There is a legend that talented Mari Collot made the bronze head just in one night. Falconet, who had been unsuccessfully trying to make the sculptural portrait of the Emperor, was so impressed by the work of his apprentice that he immediately decided to use the head for the monument.
The festive opening ceremony of the monument to Saint Petersburg founder took place on the 7th of August, 1782. Falconet, who lost the sympathies of the Empress, left for France before the monument was completed. He wasn't even invited to the ceremony of opening and introducing to the public of his own masterpiece. Catherine the Great, the one who initiated the monument construction, was among the public. On each side of the pedestal there is an inscription done in Russian and in Latin reading: "To Peter the First - Catherine the Second".
In the days of World War II, when German troops were besieging the city, the citizens of Leningrad carefully preserved the monument to Peter the Great, covering it with specially built case 14 meters high. Fortunately, the monument didn't suffer during the city bombing, and soon after the end of the war it was opened. The Bronze Horseman is still one of the main symbols of Saint Petersburg and the masterpiece of Russian and world culture.