Demidovsky Pillar, Barnaul

The Demidovsky Pillar is a modern obelisk on Demidov Square in the Central District of Barnaul, Russia. It is a memorial to 100 years of mining in the Altai Krai. It was begun on the initiative of Pyotr Kozmitch Frolov, with the first stone being laid on 18 June 1825 and completed in 1839.

The prototype for the Demidov Pillar was the Rumyantsev Obelisk in honour of the victories of Count PA Rumyantsev, established at the end of the 18th century on Vasilevsky Island in Saint Petersburg. Initial designs for the Demidovsky Pillar were for it to be 21m high, but during construction under architect Jakob Nikolayevich Popov the height was significantly reduced, to 14m. It is made of 12 grey granite blocks, cut and processed in the Kolyvanskoy township and floated down the Tcharych and Ob to Barnaul on rafts. The base rests on four iron pillars underpinning the granite pedestal, and on that pedestal is a cast bronze plaque reading: