Passage is a historical trading house (shopping gallery) in the center of St. Petersburg.
Passage, along with the one located opposite Bolshoy Gostiny Dvor, is one of the oldest and largest shopping centers in St. Petersburg.
The passage is a covered shopping gallery, the main facade of which faces Nevsky Prospekt-one of the most visited streets of the city.
The building was built by order of the then owner of the land plot - the collegiate councilor Count Yakov Ivanovich Essen-Stenbock-Fermor, designed by architect Rudolf Andreevich Zhelyazevich in 1846-1848, not only as a trading house, but also as a center of cultural and social life of the capital.
The three-tier shopping house "Passage" first opened its doors in May 1848. In addition to the main activity-retail premises, the Passage during the history also housed: anatomical museum, "mechanical theater", "wax cabinet", cabaret, strange dioramas, bank, concert hall, where the most famous Russian and European artists and musicians performed.
At that time, the Passage was striking with the luxury of the brilliant galleries, located under a transparent roof with a length of 180 meters. This was the first example of such a large-scale glass coating in St. Petersburg.
In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the building was rebuilt by architect Sergei Kozlov at the behest of its new owner, Princess N. A. Baryatinskaya. The passage became four-storeyed, and the main facade facing Nevsky Prospekt was attached to the entrance two-column portico.
Today, the Passage is a well-known shopping center. Its main facade, which harmoniously blends into a number of neighboring buildings, faces Nevsky Prospekt. The second facade of the Passage faces the Italian Street.
View of the Passage in a number of buildings on Nevsky Prospekt
The commercial premises of the Passage are rented out. Within its walls there are shops, salons, boutiques, cafes and restaurants.
On the Italian Street side of the building is the St. Petersburg State Academic Drama Theater named after V. F. Komissarzhevskaya.
This concert hall (theater) in the building of the shopping house "Passage", existed since the middle of the 19th century.
Practical information
Address of the Passage: Nevsky Prospekt, 48 / Italian street, 17-19.
Passage website: passage.spb.
Theater website: teatrvfk.
The nearest metrostations are Gostiny Dvor and Nevsky Prospekt.
Buses: 3, 7, 22, 27. Trolleybuses: 1, 5, 7, 10, 22.
All accommodation facilities in St. Petersburg, including in the city center and on Nevsky Prospekt, can be viewed and booked here
