Wandering Camera

Album 182
(Translated by
Larissa Rogacheva)

 

In this album I would like to show you the architectural ensemble in Pushkin created by Charles Cameron.
It consists of: Cameron's Gallery, Agate Rooms, Hanging Garden and The Ramp.

 

This is the general view from the opposite side of the Big Pond.

On the right side we can see a part of Catherine Palace - Zubov wing (yellow). In the way the Cameron's ensemble is its extension into the park.

The complex was created in 1780-1794; the idea was to separate the regular -French (on the right) and landscape- English (on the left) parts of the park.

The most prominent part of an ensemble is The Cameron's Gallery (on the picture)

The view towards The Gallery from the Palace and French park.
This staircase will take us to the top terrace, but not today…
The view from the English park.
Lets turn around.
The complex is the great example of the Classicistic Stile. Catherine wrote about it:

" I would like to see the project of classical stile house, built accordingly to the proper ancient rules… I desire to have the real peace of ancient Greece and Rome in my park in Tsarskoe Selo…"

And about the architect:

"Now I eventually have got hold of the master Cameron; Scotsman by berth, the great draftsman by trade, the highly reputable scholar of antiquity, the author of the famous book " About the Ancient Thermaes". We are together constructing here in Tsarskoe Selo a garden with terraces, thermae downstairs and gallery upstairs. It is going to be absolutely delightful…"

Now lets look at the Ramp.
The existence of the Ramp was dictated by the Catherine's wish to walk strait from the hanging garden into the park. So, Cameron came up with an idea of the gently sloping long ramp.

The construction began in 1792 and finished in 1794, the architect I.Neelov was assisting C.Cameron in supervision of its progress.

In 1811 the Ramp was moved in order to perfectly unite it with The Ramp Alley in the park.

 Unfortunately now it is forbidden to walk on the Ramp, at list in my memory I never even witnessed anyone walking on it…
On the sides of ramp's arches we can see masks of mythological Gods: Jupiter, Minerva, Junona, Mercury…
Instead of torches use to stand statues of Muses, but in 1798 Paul I (Catherine's son) wished to move them to Pavlovsk.

The torches (by V. Stasov's project) were installed in 1815-1826.

The Cameron's complex together with other palaces was an Empyreal Family property until 1917, after nationalization it was open as a museum in 1918.

The Cameron Gallery was almost destroyed by Nazis, who used it as a stable and workshop. It was restored and open again in 1948.

The big yellow building behind the Gallery is the Zubov's wing of the Catherine Palace, mentioned in the album 180.
Y. Felton built the Zubov's wing in 1779-1785.

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