St. Petersburg Zoo--Past, Present, and Future

Five minutes' walk from the square in front of the Alexander Palace brings one to the only remaining bastion of the old Zoo. This bastion was restored in 1824 at the wish of the Emperor Alexander I, when with the materials, taken from the wall of the Zoo, the architect Menelas (Menelows) began to build White Tower, 105 feet high, in the Gothic style and artificial "ruins" for the accommodation of the servants of this pavilion. The ruins represent walls, destroyed by cannon, near the main gate of a castle.. Beyond the gate of the ruins and a little to the left, are the remains of earth-works, where the sons of the Emperor Nicholas Pavlovich received practical instruction in fortification. On a platform inside the bastion rises a high mast with rope ladders, attached to it, while round it is a net, stretched for jumping. In summer, when the Imperial Court is absent from Tsarskoe Selo, the park is open to the public, and this is a favorite spot with children.The White Tower is surrounded at each story by a balcony with cast iron balustrades and is open to the public in summer. It consists of a series of rooms, built one above the other, and decorated with frescoes in Gothic style, which are badly damaged. The furniture is of the same style, and was probably made from Menelas' sketches. The first story consists of a Dining Room and of a Service Room; the ceiling is carved, the walls are covered with frescoes, and the furniture is of ash. Here too are some paper screens, with pasted pictures of gentlemen and ladies' fashions, cut from journals of the epoch of about 1825. In the second story are two rooms for footmen; the walls are painted with a green wash; the furniture is made of birch. In the third story is a Drawing Room (seen at right) with four windows and one door which opens onto a balcony; the door and window posts are of light wood and richly carved; the ceilings are also carved, the walls have frescoes, representing a battle of the Middle Ages; there are two looking-glasses in carved frames, two mantlepieces of white marble with mirrors above them, likewise in rich frames; the furniture is of oak with cane seats.

Zoological Park of St Petersburg by TN Plus
and Beckmann N’Thépé