Question | What date? The Bronze Horseman statue of Peter the Great.

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The Bronze Horseman is an equestrian statue of Peter the Great in the Senate Square in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It was opened to the public on 7 (18) August, 1782. Commissioned by Catherine the Great, it was created by the French sculptor Étienne Maurice Falconet. The statue is now one of the symbols of Saint Petersburg.
640px-The_Bronze_Horseman_(St._Petersburg,_Russia).jpg

As you can see, the date on the pedestal is 1782.
  • I do not believe for a second, that whoever produced this composition would have uglified it with these poorly made characters.

The_Bronze_Horseman_(St._Petersburg,_Russia).jpg

I happened to run into this 1835 publication. It had an image of the same statue of Peter the Great.

peter-the-great-1.jpg

I'm struggling to figure out what date we have displayed on the pedestal. I tried to find a better quality image on the internet, but failed.
  • I'm not sure, but top lines appear to have different letters.
peter-the-great-2.jpg

Source


KD: What date do you think we have on the drawing?
 
Solution
Appreciate it @Cemen. That’s a very interesting take on this date, as far as dates in 7k’s go.

I can see what photographs have. At the same time on the drawing, the second digit is not as clear as it is on the old photograph you linked. The digit is either modified 2, semi-erased 8, or a weirdly looking 7. What do you think the second digit on the drawing is?

The top line on the drawing also appears slightly different if you go letter by letter.
It is even impossible to make out the inscription "Peter the Great" in the drawing. I think that the artist who painted the illustration for the book did not see the monument. Just redrawn from some other drawing. What was illegible was redrawn approximately.


I'll give you...

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