Griboedov Canal

The Griboyedov Canal or Kanal Griboyedova () is a canal in Saint Petersburg, constructed in 1739 along the existing ''Krivusha'' river. In 1764–90, the canal was deepened and the banks were reinforced and covered with granite.

The Griboyedov Canal starts from the Moyka River near the Field of Mars. It flows into the Fontanka River. Its length is , with a width of .

Before 1923, it was called the Catherine Canal, after the Empress Catherine the Great, during whose rule it was deepened. The Communist authorities renamed it after the Russian playwright and diplomat, Alexandr Griboyedov.

The streets or embankments running along the canal are known as ''Naberezhnaya Kanala Griboyedova''.

Bridges

There are 21 bridges across the canal:

* Tripartite Bridge
* Novo-Konyushenny Bridge
* Italian Bridge
* Kazansky Bridge
* Bank Bridge
* Flour Bridge
* Stone Bridge
* Demidov Bridge
* Hay Bridge
* Kokushkin Bridge
* Voznesensky Bridge
* Podyachensky Bridge
* Bridge of Four Lions
* Kharlamov Bridge
* Novo-Nikolsky Bridge
* Krasnogvardeysky Bridge
* Pikalov Bridge
* Mogilyovsky Bridge
* Alarchin Bridge
* Kolomensky Bridge
* Malo-Kalinkin Bridge

Cultural references

Griboedov Canal appears on the cover of the 2011 contemporary classical album, Troika."Troika: Russia’s westerly poetry in three orchestral song cycles"
Rideau Rouge Records, ASIN: B005USB24A, 2011.

The canal is a key location in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novel, ''Crime and Punishment''. Like most locations in the novel, the canal is rarely identified by its proper name; in fact, on most occasions Dostoyevsky refers to it as a ''kanava'', a word which in English is closer to the word "ditch." In a footnote to the Penguin Deluxe Classics edition of the book, translator Oliver Ready describes the canal as a "filthy and polluted place" which is nevertheless "the topographical center of the book." The novel's protagonist, Raskolnikov, repeatedly crosses over the canal, and tentatively plans on disposing of stolen property there. The apartment building where he commits his crimes "faced the Ditch on one side and rednyaya Podyacheskay Street on the other."

Gallery

File:Demidov bridge in urban development.jpg, Demidov Bridge across the Griboyedov Canal, St. Petersburg
File:The Griboyedov Canal Quay in Saint Petersburg.jpg, Griboyedov Canal Embankment in St. Petersburg
File:Griboyedov Canal Embankment pic6.JPG, Griboyedov Canal Embankment in St. Petersburg. In the backdrop, Church of the Savior on Blood
File:Griboyedov Canal Embankment pic1.JPG, Griboyedov Canal Embankment in St. Petersburg
File:Griboyedov Canal DSC01897 2200.jpg, Griboyedov Canal, St. Petersburg
File:Saint Petersburg. Griboyedov Canal DSC03320 2200.jpg, Griboyedov Canal, St. Petersburg
File:St. Petersburg. Little-Kalinkin Bridge over the Griboyedov Canal.JPG, Malo-Kalinkin Bridge over the Griboyedov Canal, St. Petersburg
File:Moika river Griboedov Canal Adamini House Saint Petersburg.jpg, Adamini House at the junction of Moyka River and Griboyedov Canal, St. Petersburg

References

Canals of Saint Petersburg
Canals opened in 1739
1739 establishments in the Russian Empire

{{Russia-road-stub