Statue de Pierre le Grand, Russian imperial monument in Antwerp, Belgium
The statue de Pierre le Grand is a bronze sculpture of Russian Tsar Peter the Great, shown standing upright on a pedestal shaped like the bow of a ship, decorated with a wind rose. Two ornamental angels are placed at the base, alongside stone-carved inscriptions.
The monument marks the spot where Russian Tsar Peter the Great came ashore during his visit to Antwerp in April 1717. His stay was part of a broader journey through Western Europe, during which he sought to bring back ideas for modernizing Russia.
The pedestal carries inscriptions in both Dutch and Russian, visible to anyone who walks up to it. This detail reflects a moment when Antwerp and Russia were closely connected through trade and diplomacy.
The monument stands on Kloosterstraat, across from St. Michael's Abbey, and is easy to reach on foot from the city center. The surrounding streets are lined with antique shops and bookstores, so it fits naturally into a longer walk through the area.
The sculpture was made by Georgian artist Georgy Frangulyan in 1998 and paid for by Russian banks, with support from Belgian Slavicist Emmanuel Waegemans. It is rare for a monument honoring a Russian tsar to come from a non-Russian artist funded through an international partnership.
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