Wunderkammer

History

Sviyazhsk: Russian Atlantis on the Volga

Travel blog from Sviyazhsk – an ancient Russian town on an island in the middle of the Volga, which allows you to immerse yourself in several eras of Russian history from the 16th to the 20th century.

Art

"The Twelve Caesars" by Raffaello Schiaminossi: Roman Emperors in 17th Century Engraving

A series of exquisite etchings depicting Roman emperors from Julius Caesar to Domitian. Based on the biographies of Suetonius and inspired by the compositions of Antonio Tempesta, this work combines the precision of classical iconography with the expressive technique of early Baroque. Schiaminossi's engravings impress with their masterful use of chiaroscuro and attention to detail, conveying the grandeur, character, and symbolic power of the rulers of ancient Rome.

Architecture

Ancient city on the banks of the Neva

"In St. Petersburg, two types of architecture prevail: Greek and Roman," — this is how the capital of the Russian state was described by the prominent historian and local historian Ivan Ilyich Pushkaryov. The founder of the city, Emperor Peter, in an attempt to distance himself from the Moscow he disliked, which called itself the Third Rome, laid a new ancient city on the northern shores of the Neva. Absorbing the entire "spirit" and longing for antiquity, St. Petersburg recreated it in the strict plans of its architectural ensembles, classical colonnades, and triumphal arches.