The cascade chess slide was originally conceived as a dilapidated fortress. So Peter wanted to portray the first victory over the Swedish fortresses, along the Gulf of Finland. So they wanted to call the whole complex - Ruin Mountain. Later, this cascade of waterfalls was named Dragon Mountain. Dragons symbolize sea victories and fountain jets erupt from their mouths. Only when the cascades of the plates, painted in black and white in a checkerboard pattern, revealed the main descent for the water - the fountain was called the chess slide. It is noteworthy that 10 statues of Greek gods decorating the fountain were buried in the ground on the eve of the Nazi occupation. So they survived and were restored after the war. Translated with Google Translate