There are many concepts in architecture and history, which, arising at a certain stage in a single meaning, acquire other meanings and applications over time. The traditions of their use are characteristic of many eras, countries and peoples. In this article we will try to answer the question: "Belvedere is ...?"
The meaning of the concept
What is a belvedere? This is a light architectural structure in the form of a tower on a hill. It can be found as an independent building on a hill, and can be used as an architectural decorative element on the building. The concept comes from the Italian phrase "bello vedere", which literally means "great to see." In the Italian language there is a noun "il belvedere", but the Italian-Russian dictionaries do not give an exact translation for this word, but translate it just like it sounds - "belvedere". But in some Russian articles you can find his translation as a "beautiful view." Thus, from whatever point of view we approach the meaning of the word, it turns out that the meaning of this building is the place of the best view of beautiful views.
In addition to the direct use of the term, it is also used as a proper name: the belvedere is a garden and a platform on a hill. So can be called hotels, villas, cafes and restaurants. And on July 7, 2017, Moscow hosted the annual International Festival of Opera Singers named after Hans Gaboa with the same name. In this regard, the Belvedere is the name of a cultural event and even a cake, in design reminiscent of an architectural analogue.
Belvedere as an architectural structure
The shape of the belvedere is quite variable. The main thing is that the conditions are met:
- lack of overlap;
- elevated location;
- ease.
Most often, the belvedere is decorated with colonnades, but this is not necessary. As a garden-arbor, the belvedere is made using lattice - instead of glazed - walls, and sometimes only supporting walls that support the roof.
In Western European architecture, the belvedere appeared at the end of the 17th century as part of the Baroque architectural style, but over time, despite the displacement of one style by another, the belvedere changed its appearance and became an integral part of the new architecture.
Belvedere and traditions of Russian architecture
In Russia, such buildings appeared much earlier, they looked somewhat different, but their essence was therefore not different. Belvedere type can be attributed to such old Russian buildings as a tower - a tiered attic in the houses of rich boyars and merchants, a tower - an attic above the canopy in the form of a turret, and in the old Russian defense architecture - "flared up" - a turret on the roof of the fortress, where the alarm bell or alarm. In the architecture of the XVIII century and later the role of a belvedere began to perform the turret-lamps on the roof. In this photo, the belvedere tower is one of the decorations of the Izmailovsky Kremlin Romanovs in Moscow.
Peterhof
In this case, we will talk about a park building, unique in its historical and architectural significance, built by decree and personal sketches of Emperor Nicholas I for his wife Alexandra Fedorovna belvedere in Peterhof. The pavilion was built by Andrei Ivanovich Shtakenschneider in the Meadow Park, which connected the other parks of the Peterhof ensemble, at its highest point - Bibigonsky height.
The appearance of the Belvedere in Peterhof resembles more an ancient temple: raised to a high stylobate, surrounded by a harmonious colonnade of an ionic order and openwork lattice on the second floor-tier. The roof of the belvedere has a strict gable shape with triangular pediments on the end sides. The building has a delicate pink color with a snow-white decor and resembles a beautiful sink. The decor of the structure is concise: the pilasters are on the ground floor, with their help the corners of the building, openwork grilles, rectangular inserts above the windows with grisaille-like images similar to bas-reliefs are covered. The trunks of the columns of the second floor are made of gray marble. The front facade is decorated with a staircase with sculptural images of marble, as well as a portico, which is supported by gray marble caryatids. This image was used by Nicholas I for a reason, because the prototype of the pavilion was the temple on the Acropolis of Athens - Erechtheion, the porticoes of which also support the Caryatids.
Belvedere in Prague
This famous building for Queen Anna Jagiellonian was erected in Prague Castle in the middle of the XVII century. The location is traditionally for such structures - the outskirts of the Royal Gardens. The authors of the belvedere were Italian architect Giovanni Spazio and Italian sculptor Paolo della Stella.
The building is installed on a small platform of gray stone and has two floors. The lower tier is supported by arcades on ionic columns, and on the top there is a gallery, limited by a stone balustrade. The roof is curiously curved and resembles the bottom of an inverted sailboat. The decor of the building is concise and does not stand out much against the light background of stone walls. Della Stella mainly used relief inserts on mythological subjects. Among their characters there are images of the owners - Ferdinand I and his wife.
If you look at the structure from the front side, it seems as if it is a temple erected on a stone rocky slope or a high stylobate. On this side, the platform of the building resembles the foundation of a fortification, which was not at all accidental for that time. After all, dynastic marriages were a vivid characteristic of the militarily complex world of Western Europe.