View of the Blagoveshchensky Bridge — engraving

"THE NEVA AT ST PETERSBURG".

Technique, Material: Woodcut / Paper
Artist:Taylor,  Engraver: Charles Laplante
Date, Publisher: Paris, 1880.
Size: sheet 26x18, image 18.5x13 cm

The engraving presents a view of the Neva River from the embankment of Vasilievsky Island — a unique panorama capturing life along the main waterway of St. Petersburg in the second half of the 19th century. The composition is centered around the Annunciation Bridge (later Lieutenant Schmidt Bridge, now once again Annunciation Bridge) — the first permanent bridge across the Neva, opened in 1850 to a design by engineer Stanislaw Kierbedz . The bridge connects Vasilievsky Island with the central part of the city (Admiralteysky District).

In the distance, on the opposite bank, rises the silhouette of the Admiralty with its famous gilded spire — the "Admiralty Needle," which became one of St. Petersburg's main symbols. This view from Vasilievsky Island towards the Admiralty was a favorite subject for artists and travelers visiting the capital.

Along the Vasilievsky Island embankment, rail tracks are laid, along which wheeled carts (wagons on rails) move — this was part of the port infrastructure that existed here in the 19th century. Vasilievsky Island was historically the center of St. Petersburg's commercial port . Wharves, warehouses, and storage facilities were located here, where cargo ships arrived. Such rail tracks with hand-operated carts were used precisely for moving heavy goods — a kind of prototype of the modern railway line along the docks.

The Neva itself is animated by numerous vessels: small sailing boats, cargo barges, and possibly the first steamships, which by the mid-19th century had already become a common sight on St. Petersburg's waters. The engraving accurately conveys the atmosphere of a busy port city, where commercial life bustles and majestic architecture serves as a backdrop for everyday working life.

This view is a rare record of a time when the ceremonial embankment of Vasilievsky Island simultaneously served the utilitarian function of a cargo port, long before it acquired its modern museum-like, ceremonial appearance.