Bust of Perovsky in Orenburg

The bust of Vasily Alekseevich Perovsky is a monument to the Orenburg military governor in Perovsky Park in central Orenburg, on Postnikova Street. The bronze bust on a granite pedestal was unveiled in 2005 and is one of the city's memorials tied to the 19th-century history of the Orenburg region.

History of the monument

The bust was unveiled on 3 September 2005, marking the 210th anniversary of the governor's birth. It is the work of Orenburg sculptor Nadezhda Gavrilovna Petina, who spent about twelve years on the portrait. The architect was Stanislav Evgenyevich Smirnov.

The bust was cast in bronze at the local Plast art works and set on a tall granite pedestal. The park around it bears the governor's name: Perovsky Park.

Who was V. A. Perovsky

Vasily Alekseevich Perovsky was a general, the military governor of Orenburg and later governor-general of the Orenburg and Samara provinces. His years in Orenburg saw the suppression of the Bashkir uprising of 1834–1835, for which he was thanked by Nicholas I.

His name is linked to Russia's early campaigns in Central Asia: the Khiva campaign of 1839–1840 and the Kokand campaign of 1853. Under Perovsky the steppe districts were fortified, the Aral Sea was surveyed, steamship service was started on it and the Aral Flotilla was founded.

Alexander II also recognised the governor's service: Perovsky was made a count and awarded the diamond insignia of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called.

Getting there

The monument stands in Perovsky Park on Postnikova Street in central Orenburg, next to the Caravanserai architectural complex. The nearest public transport stop is named after the park, Park Perovskogo, and many city buses stop there. The park is open for walks and the bust can be viewed freely.