Havis Amanda, Helsinki, Finland - SpottingHistory.com

Havis Amanda is a nude female statue sculpted by Ville Vallgren (1855-1940). He made it 1906 in Paris, but was not erected at its present location at the Market Square in Kaartinkaupunki until 1908. Havis Amanda is one of Vallgren's Parisian Art Nouveau works. She is a mermaid who stands on seaweed as she rises from the water, with four fish spouting water at her feet and surrounded by four sea lions. She is depicted leaning backwards as if to say goodbye to her element. Vallgren's intention was to symbolize the rebirth of Helsinki. The height of the statue is 194 centimetres and with the pedestal it stands 5 metres tall. According to Vallgren's letters the model for the statue was a then 19-year-old Parisian lady, Marcelle Delquini.

Havis Amanda is the most popular statue in Helsinki. Every year on 30th of April it serves as a centrepiece for the celebrations. Students of the local universities put a cap on the statue on an elaborate ceremony.

User Reviews

AD_X (7 months ago)
Good to see.if visiting

Jan Herranen (7 months ago)
A must see attraction. The lady that rose from the sea

Pangfua Her (7 months ago)
Visited Helsinki in December and they have the Christmas market set up here during the holiday season. It's lovely!

Lisanne Welch (9 months ago)
Really pretty statue, controversial in it's day, look up the wiki. Out in the middle of a town square, easy to get to and a park on one side with a harbor on the other. Definitely recommend.

Gaijin (10 months ago)
One of Vallgren's Parisian Art Nouveau works. It is cast in bronze and sited in a fountain of granite. Havis Amanda is a mermaid who stands on seaweed as she rises from the ocean, with four fish spouting water at her feet and surrounded by four sea lions. Legend has it that a man splashing his face with water from the fountain and shouting three times 'Rakastaa!' (Finnish for 'Love!') increases the man's virility.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Alexxx1979

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The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood is one of the main sights of St. Petersburg. The church was built on the site where Tsar Alexander II was assassinated and was dedicated in his memory. Construction began in 1883 under Alexander III, as a memorial to his father, Alexander II. Work progressed slowly and was finally completed during the reign of Nicholas II in 1907. Funding was provided by the Imperial family with the support of many private donors.

Architecturally, the Cathedral differs from St. Petersburg's other structures. The city's architecture is predominantly Baroque and Neoclassical, but the Savior on Blood harks back to medieval Russian architecture in the spirit of romantic nationalism. It intentionally resembles the 17th-century Yaroslavl churches and the celebrated St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow.

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