Peterhof Palace

Peterhof is a royal palace built by the Peter the Great in the year 1710. The palace features buildings and gardens and these structures are known as “Russian Versailles”. In addition this palace is also listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The notable structures in the palace are

The Grand Palace
A huge palace with thirty rooms and it also features lower and upper gardens. The Chesma Hall is the major attraction here that features a number of paintings belonging to the Battle of Chesma. These paintings display the victorious naval ships in different forms such as the flying timbers, fireballs, smokes and flames.

The palace also features Chinese cabinets to the east and west. These cabinets were built between 1766-1769 and it features a number of decorative arts. The walls are decorated with imitation Oriental patterns.

The Grand Cascade and Samson Fountain
The Grand Cascade is built at the residence of the Emperor Louis XIV. It features an artificial grotto in two levels where one of them is faced inside and the other is faced out. It also features a museum that displays the collection of the fountains history. The exhibits also include a table carrying a bowl of fruits that was built according to the direction of Peter the Great.

The fountains are situated beneath the grotto and the water flows into a pool. It displays the statue of Samson whose tears opens the lion’s jaws displaying Russia’s victory in the Great Northern War against Sweden. These fountains are also considered as the best technological achievement by Peterhof.

The Lower Gardens
These gardens are designed in French fashion. Fountains and a major attraction, “The Sun”, is where a disk glows creating an image based on suns rays.