The Fountains of the Upper Gardens

The fountain complex of the Upper Gardens dates from a later period than that of the Lower Park. During the Petrine age this area was used for household purposes. Vegetables were grown in beds here, and three large ponds which served as water reservoirs for the Great Cascade fountains were also used for breeding fish. It was only from the mid-18th century, with the building of the Great Palace, when the main entrance was shifted from the seaside to the St Petersburg road, that Peter the Great's kitchen-garden, as it was called, took an appearance of a regular park. Along the central axis of the garden there are three extensive pools with the Mezheumny (Midway), Neptune's Chariot, and the Oak Fountains. The square pools storing water, first decorated with sculpture, later on aquired their own magnificent fountains, known as the Fountains of the Square Pools.

See also:
· the Mezheumny or
Midway Fountain;
· the Neptune Fountain;
· the Oak Fountain;
· the Fountains of
the Square Pools