One of St. Petersburg’s landmarks are the ancient Egyptian sphinxes. Two sphinxes stand in a beautiful location on Vasilievsky Island, on the Neva River embankment (near the Blagoveshchensky Bridge) in St. Petersburg. The embankment offers a beautiful view of the Winter Palace and St. Isaac’s Cathedral, which are located on the opposite bank of the river.
The sphinxes were carved approximately 3,500 years ago. They were installed at the entrance to a temple near the city of Thebes in Egypt. The temple was built for Pharaoh Amenhotep III. The sphinxes’ heads are portraits of this pharaoh. The sphinxes are made of the mineral syenite.
The sphinxes were brought to St. Petersburg from Egypt in 1832 at the initiative of Muravyov, chamberlain of the Russian imperial court. The sphinxes were installed on the University Embankment of the Neva River in 1834.
Where can you see real Egyptian sphinxes? To do this, simply visit St. Petersburg. Photograph of the sphinx on the embankment in St. Petersburg.
You can check the location of the sphinxes and other interesting places on the St. Petersburg tourist map.
The most convenient way to get to this place is from Vasileostrovskaya station.
Also located near this place in St. Petersburg are: the Kunstkamera, the Menshikov Palace, the Academy of Arts, the Rumyantsev Garden, the University, and the Zoological Museum.