Alexander Column (based on materials from the collection of rare books and manuscripts of the Scientific and Technical Library of the Emperor Alexander I St. Petersburg State Transport University)

The circumstances of the arrival of the French architect Auguste Ricard de Montferrand in Russia and his confirmation as an imperial architect engaged in projects of national importance are briefly recounted. A brief overview of the erection by Montferrand and his main assistant Antonio Adamini of the Alexander Column, one of the most significant monuments for the architectural appearance of the city of St. Petersburg, is presented. Montferrand’s activities in creating printed and handwritten monuments, in which the progress of the work was recorded, are considered, with the aim of glorifying the master and the engineering feat he accomplished. Particular attention is paid to individual collections of original handwritten drawings and plans related to the construction and located in the collection of rare books and manuscripts of the Scientific and Technical Library of the Emperor Alexander I St. Petersburg State Transport University, such as the original project of the monument proposed by Montferrand, collections of drawings and plans prepared by Montferrand and Adamini, and the highest approved working drawings from the collection of the construction office for the construction of St. Isaac’s Cathedral. Handwritten materials are considered in the aspect of the purposes of their creation and features as sources by which it is possible to trace in detail the process of creating the monument.

1. [Montferrand, Auguste Ricard de]. Description de la Colonne Monumentale érigée a la mémoire de l’Empereur Alexandre Ier. – Saint-Pétersbourg : Imprimerie de Mme Ve Pluchart et Fils, Août 1834. – frontispice, 80 p.

2. Navone, Nicola. Antonio Adamini e l’elevazione della Colonna Alessandrina a San Pietroburgo. Dal mito al progetto: La cultura architettonica dei maestri italiani e ticinesi nella Russia neoclassica. (Catalogue of the exhibition at the State Hermitage Museum, February 18th — April 18th 2004.) – Saint Petersburg, 2004. – 582 p. (In Russ., transl. from Italian)

3. Montferrand, Auguste Ricard de. Plans et détails du Monument consacré a la mémoire de l’Empereur Alexandre. Ouvrage dédié a Sa Majesté l’Empereur Nicolas Ier. – Paris: chez Thierry frères, 1836. – [6], IV, 40, [2] p., 48 ill. vignettes et planches lith.

4. Institute of the Transport Engineers Corps. Saint Petersburg. (Instruction No. 647 dated April 22th 1860 to the Inspector of Classes of the Institute, Major-General Engineer V. P. Sobolevsky from the Director, Major-General E. I. Sieverbrück). (In Russ.).

5. Montferrand, Auguste Ricard de. Оbélisque en granit de cent onze pieds de hauteur, projeté au centre de la place du palais. – [S. l. : s. n.], [1829]. – 1 pl.

6. Tarasova E.A. F.P. Tolstoy’s bas-reliefs on the themes of the Patriotic War of 1812 in architectural decoration. In hoc signo vinces: Collected papers to mark the 75th anniversary of Georgy Vadimovich Vilinbakhow. The State Hermitage Museum. – Saint Peterburg: The State Hermitage Publishers, 2024. – 496 p. : il. (In Russ.)

7. Montferrand, Auguste Ricard de. Plans et détails du monument consacré a la memoire de l’Empereur Alexandre. – [S. l. : s. n.], [Non ante 1857]. – [3] planches text., [13] planches blancs, [72] planches dessin. aquar.

8. Institute of the Transport Engineers Corps. Saint Petersburg. (Instruction No. 59 dated January 14th 1860 to the Institute’s librarian from the Director of Institute, Major-General Engineer V. P. Sobolevsky). (In Russ.).

9. [Montferrand, Auguste Ricard de]. Plans et description de la colonne Alexandrine à St. Pétersbourg. – [S. l. : s. n.], [S. a.]. – [10] p., [12] planches, plume, lavis d’encre de couleur.

10. Adamini, Antonio Agostino). Diario de Lavori Fati ala Construzione del Monumento eretto in onore di Alesandro Imo disegnati ed eseguiti del Cavaliere A. D. Adamini. – [S. l. : s. n.], 1835. – 1–70, 72, 74, 75, 76, 78, 80, 69 planches, manuscript, plume, encre, aquarel.

11. Institute of the Transport Engineers Corps. Saint Petersburg. (Instruction No. 3125 dated November 2nd 1871 to the Institute’s librarian from the Director of the Institute, Privy Councilor V. P. Sobolevsky.). (In Russ.).

12. Montferrand, Auguste Ricard. Высочайше утвержденные рисунки и чертежи по работам Исаакиевского собора. – Санкт-Петербург, 1818–1868.

13. Institute of the Transport Engineers Corps. Saint Petersburg. (Instruction No. 1541 dated October 17th 1871 to the Institute’s librarian from the Director of the Institute, Privy Councilor V. P. Sobolevsky.). (In Russ.).