Peterhof Palace

Peterhof, commissioned by Peter the Great in the early 18th century on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland, is an ensemble of palaces and gardens whose defining feature is a cascade of more than 150 fountains running from the Grand Palace down to the sea canal, powered entirely by gravity without pumps. The Grand Cascade's centrepiece is a gilded Samson fountain symbolising Russia's victory over Sweden. The gardens and fountains operate from May to October, and the reflection of the gilded facades in the fountain pools at sunrise provides a classic photographic composition.