Mikhail Shemyakin's bronze sculptures on Robespierre Embankment have a very unusual appearance. From afar, they are ordinary sphinxes. If the word "ordinary" is even applicable to these creatures. And only up close can one make out one astonishing, even frightening detail. Their faces are divided into two parts. One half is a youthful female image. The other is the gnawed-away, exposed grin of a skull.
Such a face, both living and dead, is deeply symbolic: the dead, disfigured half is turned toward the Kresty detention center, while the ordinary, human half faces the residential buildings on the opposite side. According to Mikhail Shemyakin's idea, these St. Petersburg sphinxes are a monument to the victims of political repression, to all those who suffered under a cruel state regime.
The impression made by the sculptural composition is heightened by copper plaques engraved with lines of poetry by Soviet poets and an imitation prison grille. This place truly makes a powerful impression.
Not far from Shemyakin's sphinxes is the famous Egyptian House. Do not miss the opportunity to take a look at it as well. The facade of the residential building is decorated with figures of pharaohs, columns with the faces of Egyptian deities, and hieroglyphs. Address: 23 Zakharievskaya Street.
