Along each wing of Catherine Palace are two rows of Baroque gilded Atlantes. On the front of the palace, there are 48 large ones on the first level and 88 on the second story. The same number graces the backside. Using a male figure as a column was introduced by the Greeks during the Early Classical Period (490 to 450 BCE). They typically represent Atlas, the Titan from mythology who was condemned by Zeus to hold up the sky for eternity. These were created by Johann Franz Dunker. The German sculptor also designed the Atlantes and Caryatids (female columns) for the Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg. Admiration for Dunker’s work sparked a revival of these columns in architecture through the early 19th century.
