Ladoga Canal major canals constructed in Russia. It was one of the projects of Peter the Great, who ordered its construction in 1718. Rapid economic development in Russia required a significant expansion of routes, especially waterways. One part of the Vyshny Volochek waterway (1709) linking the Volga river to the Baltic Sea, passed through Lake Ladoga. The Ladoga section of the route was one of the most difficult and dangerous because the lake is prone to winds and storms which destroyed hundreds of cargo ships. Peter the Great decided to avoid the navigation in the huge and stormy lake by building a
Staraya Ladoga House of Creativity Alexander Samokhvalov was in Staraya Ladoga many times in 1924–26. He took part in the restoration of St. George's Church. That experience gave a great deal to this artist: it helped him to understand the effect of joining a monumental painting with the architectural forms. He painted his "Staraya Ladoga" (1924) and "Family of Fisherman" (1926, Russian Museum) there. The restoring works continued 15 years since 1946, meanwhile Leningrad artists began to work in Staraya Ladoga since 1940s. Primarily artists stayed at the native country houses. The most popular was a house of an old woman Tatyana Egorovna, whose portrait