Manezhnaya Square, Moscow, Russia - a photo on Flickriver

            One of the main pedestrian spaces of central Moscow, Manezhnaya Square ('Manezhka') lies between Red Square and the start of the northwestern (i.e. towards St Petersburg) Tverskaya Street. Created in 1932 by clearing a 'bourgeois' drinking district, the square is named for the indoor riding academy (a 'manège'), converted to an exhibition space in 1831, on its western side.

Pedestrianised and refurbished in the 1990s, the square now features a four-storey subterranean shopping centre and car park. Daylight is provided by these glazed domes, the central one of which, topped by a statue of St George, Moscow's patron saint, serves as a world clock of the northern hemisphere. The name 'Фонтан Часы Мира', or 'World Clock Fountain' seems to suggest it's a, well, fountain, but I didn't see that. Maybe it's the atrium underneath?

The other main subject of this photo is the 10-storey Constructivist building looming in the background, which is the headquarters of the State Duma (Gosduma), the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia.
Built in 1935 to house the Soviet Council of Ministers, the facade is still topped by the Soviet coat of arms, though the double-headed eagle also appears over the entrance. It's not immediately obvious, but the complex seems to be about double the apparent size: the bluer-grey, seemingly more modern, building behind is linked to the main one on Ulitsa Okhotnyy Ryad ('Hunter's Row').

To the Duma's immediate right is the domed, green-and-white House of the Unions. Built in the late 18th Century, this was a venue of concerts and balls until 1917, when it was passed to the Moscow Council of Trade Unions. However, it also continued to host events and several General Secretaries lay in state there.

On the far right is the Four Seasons Hotel, a 2014 building on the site of, and replicating the famous façade of, the Hotel Moskva (as seen on every bottle of Stolichnaya vodka). Designed by Alexey Shchusev and built 1932–38 as the first feature of the new square, the hotel was one of Moscow's finest, with its own entrance to the Metro.

On the left, behind St. George, is another luxury hotel, the Hotel National.

Taken in: Russia / Moscow / Moscow (show map)

Taken on: October 22, 2012

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Sets appears in: • Moscow

Groups appears in: • Russia • MOSCOW / МОСКВА more » • Squares • MOCKBA • Russia in Photographs • Geotagging: Russia • Urban Landscape « less

Camera: Canon EOS 450D, f/6.3, 1/60 sec, 24mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 450D
Lens:	EF-S15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM
Aperture:	f/6.3
Exposure Time:	0.017 sec (1/60)
Focal Length:	24mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Partial
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CC 2015.5 (Windows)
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