Mirror labyrinth, Chief Accountant Fairy and basilisk fountain: how Moscow parks surprise visitors

Moscow parks boast its spectacular spots and amazing objects. Some of them will help turn a walk into an exciting adventure with beautiful photos (if you use your camera on time). Read on to learn about openwork gazebos, a mirror labyrinth, a dynamically lit fountain and other park attractions.

Fountains to everyone’s taste

The largest and most beautiful dynamically lit fountain in Moscow is located in the Tsaritsyno Museum-Reserve. The fountain was opened in 2007. Its diameter is over 50 meters. Every day, from the end of April to October, more than 800 jets with classical and modern music rise to a height of up to 15 meters. Visitors can enjoy the water show from 07:00 a. m. till midnight. After 9:00 p. m., underwater lighting provided by 4,000 lamps switches on.

A rose garden with a majolica fountain is one of the most beautiful places in Gorky Park, which some guests may not know about. Visitors can see it at Andreevsky Bridge next to Pushkinskaya Embankment. In the 1930 s, the rose garden with the fountain was designed by architects Alexander Vlasov and Mikhail Korzhev. Initially, dozens of varieties of roses from different parts of the world were collected there. During the Great Patriotic War, the fountain was destroyed. In the 1950 s, a new Roman fountain was built, and in 2009, specialists restored benches with carved backs and openwork arches of the flower garden using archival materials. According to the surviving photographs, they also reproduced the scheme of planting roses.

The Bauman Garden features an unusual basilisk fountain presented to the Russian capital by Basel residents in 2012. Legend has it that Basel people defeated the basilisk, a monster with a rooster’s head and dragon wings. Its image became the city emblem, and numerous fountains were decorated with basilisk figures.

The central square of Lianozovsky Park has a hi-tech fountain. This is a seven-meter stele made of Corten steel, water flows down it from both sides, and in the evenings it features aesthetic lighting.

Aesthetic gazebos and unusual art objects

The famous white openwork gazebo in the parterre part of Gorky Park will again be filled with sounds of music. The wooden hole pattern and the white grand piano of the 1950 s made it not only one of the park’s iconic music area, but also a permanent meeting place for creative people. An important part of the restoration work that took place in 2017 was the restoration of its historical appearance based on archival photographs.

The Hermitage Garden on both sides of the Novaya Opera Theater offers a great location for a small photoshoot. Two openwork gazebos are made in the English style and consist entirely of cast iron elements, from supporting columns to railings. They appeared in the Hermitage Garden as part of the Novaya Opera Theater project in 1991.

Young people can find a fashionable spot for shooting short videos and photos in Khodynskoye Pole Park, where two unusual art objects are located. The first attraction is a mirror labyrinth made from metal pillars of different heights. Reflecting light, they create an amazing optical illusion. The central promenade features Stable Composition, a three-meter snow-white sculpture made of polymer, which consists of four vertical elements and depicts the connection between chaos and stability.

Chief Accountant Fairy, real and mythical heroes

Since Soviet times, parks of culture and leisure have been decorated with sculptures, and this tradition is preserved. For example, visitors to Gorky Park can see Ballerina created by famous sculptor Elena Janson-Manizer in the 1930 s. Galina Ulanova, a soloist with the Bolshoi Theater, was the model. If you quickly go round the sculpture, you get the feeling that the ballerina is dancing. It is located next to the building of the park administration.

Another curious object is Diver Lighthouse, a three-meter bronze statue. The helmet of the figure, mounted on a pedestal on Pushkinskaya Embankment has a rhythmically flickering lamp that lights up along with the city lighting. Sculptor Vera Mukhina conceived the idea of this unusual monument in 1937. She expected to make it 40 meters long, but she could not put her idea into practice. In 2016, artist Leonid Tishkov created a smaller version of the sculpture. It is the first monument to divers in Moscow.

The Kuskovo Memorial Estate has more than 50 park sculptures, mostly the works of Italian masters of the 18 th century. Figures of historical and mythical heroes are located in different parts of the estate. For example, river nymph Naiad is in front of the Italian house. She holds a vessel with pouring water in her hands. Visitors to the estate can see goddess Diana, the patroness of hunters and the Moon, next to the Italian garden. A crescent moon adorns her head, and a loyal dog sits at her feet.

The largest sculpture of the estate is the image of Scamander, the god of the river of the same name near ancient Troy. Guests can see the sculpture in the center of the parterre of the formal park. Scamander is a unique center of the Kuskovo pantheon of ancient gods.

Visitors to Sokolniki Park can see a sculpture called Chief Accountant Fairy, an impromptu monument to all chief accountants, to the left of the Dance Veranda stage in the Monetary Garden. The gilded figure of a flying girl holds an abacus in her hands being surrounded by structures made of cubes with financial terms engraved on them.

The landmark of 50-Letiya Oktyabrya Park is the sculptural composition called My Family. According to the creators, four multi-colored palms belong to dad, mom and two children. Visitors can walk the paths through the central palms. Some Moscow residents believe that if they toe the palms, making a wish, it will come true. In the evening, the composition is beautifully illuminated.

During a walk in Terletskaya Dubrava Park visitors can see the sculpture Military Instructor with a Dog installed in 2009 in memory of the Great Patriotic War. Since 1924, the Krasnaya Zvezda Central Military Technical Dog Breeding School, which trained dogs in various military specialties, was located in the urban forest. Since 2009, guests can see Coachman sculpture in Terletskaya Dubrava recreation area. The sculpture reminds us that a segment of the famous Vladimir Highway has been preserved there.