The Chesme Column (Russian: Чесменская колонна) in Tsarskoye Selo commemorates three Russian naval victories in the Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774, specifically the Battle of Chesma. It was constructed in the Large Pond of the Landscape Park of the Catherine Palace to Rinaldi's designs over the years 1774-78. The column should not be confused with the Chesme Obelisk in Gatchina.
The monument is a Doric rostral column of white-and-pink marble, decorated with ship bows rostra and crowned by a bronze figure of an eagle (symbol of Russia) trampling a crescent (symbol of Turkey). The column stands on a red marble pedestal lined with bronze bas-reliefs illustrating the Russian victories: these were destroyed by the Germans during the World War II and subsequently restored from old photographs. The pedestal rests on a stepped pyramid-like granite platform.
Read more about Chesme Column: Gallery
Famous quotes containing the word column:
“Averageness is a quality we must put up with. Men march toward civilization in column formation, and by the time the van has learned to admire the masters the rear is drawing reluctantly away from the totem pole.”
—Frank Moore Colby (1865–1925)