Egyptian bridge

The Egyptian bridge, built in 1825-1826, is located in St. Petersburg, in the Admiralty district and connects two islands: Pokrovsky and Nameless, passing through the Fontanka River. The bridge connects Admiralty Avenue with its parts, separated by a river. To the metro station "Baltiyskaya" a little more than a kilometer distance. The design of the bridge is original and unique, as is its history. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, large-scale interest was caused by the culture and architectural features of Ancient Egypt, with its characteristic columns and portals, hieroglyphs and cuneiform writing. On the site of the modern bridge, previously there was a chain lightened, its prototype is the Panteleimon Bridge, but having only three supporting chains, not five. The figures of the Sphinxes on the Egyptian Bridge suffered greatly during the Great Patriotic War and needed complete restoration. Egyptian Anichkov, Bank and Lion Bridges are an important part of the image of St. Petersburg and expressively differ from other bridges in their “sculpture”. Engineers V. von Tretter and V. A. Christianovich were the authors of the Panteleimon Bridge near the Summer Garden and are also the authors of the Egyptian Bridge. Sculptures and details of the bridge were made at the factory of Byrd K.N., and the coastal foundations were created by Gabriel Vasiliev. Two sphinxes, cast according to the sketch of Sokolov, did not fit for the Egyptian bridge and they were installed on the pier of Krestovsky Island, and later transferred to Mostotrest. It is important to note that in 1905, the Egyptian Bridge collapsed under the weight of a squadron of guards cavalry and 11 sledges with charioteers. The bridge collapsed on the ice of the Fontanka River, killing three horses. Since then, a temporary seven-span wooden bridge has been installed, which served until 1956, when a new bridge was built by the engineer Demchenko.