Avtovo, in St. Petersburg, is the most beautiful subway station I have ever seen.  I never thought that I would use the adjective “beautiful” for a subway station, but when I came to Russia last year, that changed pretty quickly.

I’m still not finished my Moscow metro station conquest, and I didn’t get to see all of St. Petersburg’s, but I’m confident that even when I do finish all the Moscow stations, Avtovo will still be the prettiest subway station I’ve ever seen.  Don’t get me wrong, many other stations are incredible and beautiful, but they are in different ways.  Komsomolskaya is amazing for the historic mosaics and Novoslobodskaya for the stained glass, but Avtovo is in a class of its own.

Looking down the Avtovo tunnel; “B” is the “V” sound in Russian.

I admit that when I first got off the train and looked down the tunnel, I didn’t think Avtovo was going to be one of the best.

After all, it’s one of the older stations having opened on November 15th, 1955.  Also, since it’s the third station from the bottom of the red line, I wasn’t expecting it to be exceptional.  Stations toward the end of lines usually aren’t among the more impressive ones.

Looking down the track, I wasn’t surprised to see the gorgeous chandeliers, but my jaw dropped when I turned around and walked down the platform, my jaw dropped. ↓

Doesn’t Avtovo seem like a palace?

When the trains weren’t coming and going, I forgot that I was actually standing on a subway platform.  Walking down Avtovo’s platform made me feel like I was in a palace, but the columns are what really did it for me.  At first, I thought the grey columns were steel, but as I got closer, I realized that they’re GLASS!  Look!  ↓

What would a detailed, ornate class column from 1955 Russia be without a communist star?

As you can see in the previous photo of the platform, the columns toward the end are marble. Apparently, they were only supposed to be temporary.  I think they look nice behind the glass ones.  What do you think?

I can’t think of a single metro station in Russia that doesn’t have marble.  Also, now that I think about it, all the old metro stations I’ve seen have a communist star or some sort of communist symbolism.  Most of them also have some kind of mosaic artwork, and here is Avtovo’s at the end of the platform behind the marble columns. ↓

The mosaic commemorates the Leningrad Blockade from 1941-1944.  It reminds me of the mosaic at the end of the Novoslobodskaya station platform.  Here’s a close-up. ↓

I can’t let you go without showing you this station’s ventilation grilles.  I was surprised to see that they don’t represent communism like others I’ve seen, like Prospect Mira’s for example.

Is Avtovo the most beautiful

subway station you’ve ever seen?

The post Photo Friday: Avtovo – The Most Beautiful Subway Station appeared first on Trekking with Becky.