Old Stock Exchange
Chosen to represent St. Petersburg on the 50-ruble bank note, this elegant neoclassical building faces the Neva River from the eastern tip of Vasilyevsky Island like an ancient Greek temple and, with the two Rostral Columns flanking it, forms one of the most celebrated vistas in the city.The original St. Petersburg Stock Exchange, built in the 1730s, was wooden. Work began in 1783 on a new stone building by renowned architect Giacomo Quarenghi, but his oval design proved unpopular and in 1804, soon after the building was finished, it was demolished to make way for the present building, designed by Frenchman Thomas de Thomon, who is said to have modeled his designs on the Temple of Hera at Paestum.The building was completed in 1810, although the official opening of the Exchange was not until 1816.
