The monument to Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin is on Arts square in front of the building of the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. The monument was established in June 1957. Authors were made by the sculptor M. K. Anikushin and architect Vasily Aleksandrovich Petrov. Sculpture great poet was opened in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the city Leningrad.

The monument was made of bronze at a local factory "Monumentality". Height is more than 4 meters, together with the pedestal is about 8 meters. The pedestal was carved from a reddish granite, which is mined in CT-Lahti near Leningrad. The base is made of wrought granite. Carved gold inscription: "Alexander Pushkin" can be seen on the front of the pedestal. Thanks to the pedestal impressive size, through which the figure of Alexander rises above the earth, the sculpture fit perfectly into the ensemble of the square, which was designed in neoclassical style by the architect Karl Ivanovich Rossi.

The image of Pushkin, created Anikushin, is distinguished by sublimity and romance. Face of the poet illuminates creative inspiration. At the same time characteristic plasticity and clarity of the silhouette. Alexander is depicted in motion, he moves forwards, and the sense of expressive impulse stresses thrown right hand.

History of the sculpture dates back to 1936, when the Council of people's Commissars of the Soviet Union, a decision was made about the need to erect a monument to the 100-th anniversary of the poet's death. A year later, in 1937, was organized by the all-Union competition for the best project of the monument. At first it was supposed to be set at Exchange square, Vasilievsky island. The square was renamed in Pushkin. In a solemn ceremony were laid to the monument. But, despite this, none of the participants failed to provide a worthy project, and eventually a monument on Vasilevsky island has not appeared.

After the great Patriotic war in 1947 was again declared a national competition for the best project of the monument to Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin in Leningrad. The first 3 rounds failed to reveal the winner. Sculptor Lev Davidovich Muravin and architect Joseph Yulievich Karakis were awarded second prize. IV competition outdoor competition in 1949, your sketch was presented by a young 32-whitny sculptor Mikhail Anikushin, recently graduated from the Academy of fine arts. In the end, his work was approved by the Commission. The ceremonial laying of the monument was made in 1949, 150-year birthday of the great Russian poet.

During the work on the final version of the monument to Mikhail Konstantinovich has created a large number of graphic and sculptural portraits of the poet, and, in addition, figure compositions of A. S. Pushkin to Moscow University (1953) and for the station "Pushkinskaya" Leningrad metro (1955). In 1958 the artist Boris Vladimirovich Ioganson wrote that wonderful monument adorning the Leningrad area of Arts, Anikushin was created after the state Commission was adopted earlier model of the monument to the poet. However, Michael K. was confident that this sculpture is not perfect, and therefore it was decided to create a new, deeper and more complete version of the monument to Pushkin.

In 1958, the monument to Alexander Pushkin, Mikhail Anikushin was awarded the Lenin prize, which was one of the highest forms of encouragement of citizens for major achievements in literature, science, art, etc.