Annual ice sculpture festival in St. Petersburg.

Saint Petersburg became the birthplace of the first ice sculpture. In 1740, right in the middle of the ice-covered Neva River, the Ice Palace was erected, at the behest of Empress Anna Ioannovna, famous for her extravagant disposition and love of all kinds of fun, for the weddings of her courtiers. In the palace, built from carved blocks of ice, all furniture and objects, including flowers and playing cards, were made of ice. At the entrance was an ice elephant with an ice driver, ice dolphins shooting fireworks, and ice cannons “shooting” ice balls. There was ice logs in the fireplace in the bedroom. Two sea monsters were located on the sides of the gate. During the day, water from the Neva flowed from their mouths. The ice elephant did the same, from time to time “blow the trumpet” with the help of a trumpeter hidden inside it. Ice statues, vases, trees with birds on their branches. On either side of the Ice House, in the guard room, a man was spinning a paper lantern with “ridiculous figures” painted on their faces. The winter of 1739-1740 was extremely cold. Frosts of 30 degrees lasted until spring, and the Ice House entertained everyone for a long time, only the guards kept order.