Fountain house is the second name of
Sheremetiev Palace
which was constructed in a baroque style
by the famous architect Savva Chevakinsky. The palace is situated in the left bank
of Fontanka river opposite the empress’ Summer House. Peter the Great
personally assigned this place for Field-Marshal Boris Sheremetiev for his
contribution to the Northern War. The palace became famous not only for its
architecture, but also for the romantic lovestory of Count Nikolai Sheremetev
and the brilliant serf singer Prascovya Kovaleva-Zhemchugova, who later became
Countess Sheremeteva, besides the palace was the favorite place to visit by
such great writers as Pushkin, Zhukovsky, Turgenev, Glinka, Serov, Stasov, and
many other talented writes, composers, artists and painters. After the
revolution the palace became the property of Soviet state.
In 1936 the palace became the place
of living for the well-known Russian poetess
Anna Akhmatova (1889-1966), who settled in a wing with her husband. In 1989 it
was decided to create in the Fountain House the museum devoted to life and work
of Akhmatova. The museum
of Akhmatova contains well-known
portraits and photographs of the poetess and her contemporaries, books from her
library, rare editions, unique autographs of Silver Age poets and assorted
memorabilia. The other part of the palace was transferred to the museum
dedicated to the history of the Sheremetiev family and besides there is
exhibition of musical instruments.
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