Prioratsky Park in Gatchina. Impressions

May

2021

фотографии, путешествия

31 May 2021 15:45

On Sunday, May 30, 2021, my wife and I decided to visit Khvoyny to photograph the flowering fields. But by the will of fate we ended up back in Gatchina - the distance is short: only 25 minutes (17 kilometers) by car. We visited Priory Park in the evening.

Priory Park is on the same lake system as Sylvia Park. But in spirit and idea, they are very different.
Sylvia is a regular park, while Priory is a nature park. They are located on opposite sides of the central street of Gatchina - 25 October Avenue.

If Sylvia on the western side, as we already know, was created with the participation of an English gardener, then on the eastern side the Priory Park shows pictures of real Russian nature without human participation.

Only the Priory Palace rises above the Black Lake. The white walls of the palace look contrasting in the rays of the setting sun.
The architecture of the palace is interesting - a mixture of styles: white stone churches like in Rus', but the silhouette is Gothic, and upon closer inspection one can see oriental (the central tower resembles a mosque) and Chinese motifs (if you look closely). The resulting image is neutral. It’s as if he’s not tied to a time or a specific country.

The Priory Palace was built on the instructions of Paul I. Its windows face west, onto the lake, apparently with the purpose of admiring the setting sun.
The architect of the palace is N.A. Lviv, plan and construction date 1797.

From the central avenue of Gatchina, a gravel pedestrian path about a kilometer long leads towards the palace.

It’s interesting and unexpected that seagulls are flying around the Priory Palace.

Next to the palace there is a small building - apparently a kitchen or other auxiliary building.

“The Priory Palace is the architectural symbol of Gatchina, its unique calling card. This unique building was built according to the plan of the architect N.A. Lvov for the Knights of the Order of Malta and is the only monument in Russia to the earthworks of the late 18th century. When Russian Emperor Paul I assumed the duties of trustee of the Order of Malta and became its prior, he needed a residence to perform new duties... The palace was built for two months in 1798 and has stood for 200 years on the shores of the artificial Black Lake."
-- quote