Page 15 - Reading Success B6

There are many statues in Russia, but the most famous is the Bronze

Horseman in Saint Petersburg. It is an equestrian statue of Peter the Great, made
by Etienne Maurice Falconet, a French sculptor. Catherine the Great, a German

princess who married into the Romanov line, ordered it to be built. If New York
City has the Statue of Liberty, Saint Petersburg has the Bronze Horseman one of

its symbols. In the statue, Peter the Great sits heroically on his horse, one arm
pointing towards the River Neva in the west. It looks as if the horse is rearing at

the edge of a cliff, and trampling a serpent. The serpent is said to represent the
enemies of Peter and of evil in general.

The pedestal wherein the statue stands, which is called the Thunder Stone, is
also famous. It is believed to be the largest stone ever moved by man. It was an

enormous boulder, and Falconet wanted to work on it in its original location.
However, Catherine the Great ordered it to be moved before being cut as a feat of

Russian achievement. They had to develop new methods to move it. Marin
Carburi, an Italian lieutenant colonel in the Russian Army, headed the project.

Main Idea

What is the main idea of this story?

a. the biggest statue in Saint Petersburg

b. the heaviest statue in Saint Petersburg
c. the most famous statue in Saint Petersburg

d. the most interesting statue in Saint Petersburg

18_Reading Success B 6