The only monument to Catherine the Great in Petersburg, designed by sculptor Mikeshin, was erected on Alexandrinskaya Square, on which looks the facade of Russia’s first public library the Empress had established. Unveiled in 1873, the monument portrayed Catherine in bronze on a high pedestal decorated with the symbols of royal power. Catherine the Great is dressed in her official gown and holds a scepter in her right hand and an olive wreath in her left hand. She has done lot to the benefit of St. Petersburg and its people for which she was very much loved. Her time was often considered the "golden age" of Russia. That is why the statue of Catherine is surrounded by statues of the most prominent people of her reign: politicians and poets, military men and courtiers. The monument is located in the middle of a small, grass-covered square, just off Nevsky Prospekt, which is lined by the Anichkov Palace, the Alexandrinsky Drama Theater and the Russian National Library. As one of the country's most enlightened monarchs, Catherine could not have chosen a better spot herself.