Metro Stations

Monuments of architecture and monumental art

You would probably ask what can be attractive and interesting in getting to know such a utilitarian destination as the city underground? There may be nothing all over the world, but not in the cities of the former Soviet Union.

Starting from the first lines of the Moscow Metro in 1935, the concept of creating underground palaces for citizens, which they used in their everyday life, was laid. Built quite late relative to world practice, the Russian metro has become one of the main attractions for tourists from abroad. In addition to the rich architectural and decorative finery, complex engineering developments, the St. Petersburg metro is also famous for being the deepest tunnel in the world. In almost all stations, floors and walls are decorated with marble of various breeds and color combinations.

Here you will find information about some of the most beautiful stations that are worth seeing when visiting St. Petersburg.

Uprising Square

The story of the St. Petersburg metro begins at Uprising Square, which earned the right to be considered station No. 1, it was here that on November 15, 1955, the grand opening of the first metro line in the city took place. It is also the first one because often it is from there the acquaintance with the city of city guests begins, arriving by train to the main railway station Moskovsky Station. You can get inside both
from the station building and from the ground lobby on Uprising Square, where the station is located.

Uprising square metro station, Saint Petersburg

Hence the name of the station, it appeared in Soviet times thanks to revolutionary actions here in February and October 1917. The station’s decorative design is also dedicated to these events, which put an end to the monarchy in Russia and the formation of a new state on a world map called the USSR. In the color of the flag of the USSR, the walls and floors are finished with granite and marble in shade of red. On the walls you will see bronze bas-reliefs depicting significant events in the chain of revolutionary struggle of workers, soldiers, sailors, led by future leaders of the country. Beautiful arched lamps not only provide the rooms with light, but also create a magnificent effect of spatial division.

Pushkinskaya

The name is due to the fact that at the time of the station’s inception, it was 150 years since the birth of the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. This was also due to the fact that it is located in close proximity to the first railway station in Russia, from where trains departed for the Tsarskoye Selo suburb of St. Petersburg. There, the poet spent the best years of his life, first as a student in the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, and then his honeymoon with his young wife in a rented summer cottage.

Pushkin monument metro station decoration, Saint Petersburg

A monument to the unforgettable poet was erected at the station, the first and possibly the only monument in the world, located at a depth of sixty meters underground. It portrays the creator sitting on the background of a mural landscape depicting Tsarskoye Selo Park.

Narvskaya

The station is located in a place where in the old days there was a Narva outpost, from where the road to the city of Narva began, now a city in Estonia on the border with Russia.

Narvskaya metro station in Saint Petersburg

At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, many workers from nearby plants lived here, and in the early years of Soviet power, entire neighborhoods were built for working families. Therefore, the station’s decor uses images of Soviet people of various professions. You can see beautiful voluminous high reliefs made of concrete with marble chips located on massive pylons. Textile workers, foundry workers, builders, shipbuilders, collective farmers, sailors and soldiers, teachers, doctors and artists and others. All those on whose shoulders lay the successes of the Soviet state in rapid industrialization, culture and agriculture.

Avtovo

This is a pearl in the necklace of the architectural splendor of the St. Petersburg metro. It is worth noting that the first eight stations of the city are now listed as cultural heritage sites and are protected by the state. And Avtovo metro station was repeatedly recognized by the most influential world publications as the most beautiful metro station. And it’s really hard to argue with that.

The visitors are impressed by the seemingly completely glassy rows of columns supporting the arches of the tunnels. Decorative glass is really used here in a large volume, but of course for facing concrete structures. Glass panels are cast bas-reliefs depicting the symbols of the Red Army – five-pointed stars and laurel and oak wreaths. This theme in the decor was chosen in order to emphasize the proximity of the location, only three kilometers from the front line during the Second World War, where the Nazi army was stopped by the defenders of the city. The magnificent mosaic “Motherland” is dedicated to victory in a bloody war. It occupies the entire end wall and is made in red and gold tones to convey the solemnity and joy of the moment the war ends.

Would you like to see this beauty with your own eyes and learn more interesting facts about the metro system in St. Petersburg? Look at my next tour

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Information About the Excursion


Schedule

All year
Uprising Square5.40 - 22.00
Pushkinskaya5.38 - 22.00
Narvskaya5.36 - 22.00
Avtovo5.30 - 22.00

 


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