Did a Roman god inspire a statue in the heart of Russia? Look closely at the Vertumnus Statue. You might be surprised by the echoes of ancient mythology here in Saint Petersburg. The Vertumnus Statue is a unique piece of art here, a tribute to a Roman god of seasons, change, and plant growth. This isn’t a typical Saint Petersburg monument celebrating tsars or military victories. Instead, it represents something different, a connection to a different culture and time. The original Vertumnus was a master of disguise. Ovid, in his Metamorphoses, tells how Vertumnus transformed himself to win the heart of Pomona, the goddess of fruit trees. He even disguised himself as an old woman to get into her orchard. Our Vertumnus Statue, though, stands proudly in a single form, capturing the spirit of change and growth without the need for physical transformations. While Saint Petersburg boasts countless monuments to its rich history, the Vertumnus Statue stands out. It reminds us that art can transcend borders and time, bringing ancient myths to life in unexpected places.
М. К. Прудников
Born into a peasant family in 1913, Mikhail Prudnikov’s journey began in a small village nestled within the Tomsk Governorate.