The Bronze Horseman is a Russian monument dedicated to Peter the Great, founder of the city and ruler of the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire.The monument was built by order of the Empress Catherine the Great as a tribute to her famous predecessor on the Russian throne.Created by the famous French sculptor Etienne Maurice Falconet, depicts the most prominent reformer of the Russia state as a Roman hero. The pedestal is made of a single piece of red granite molded into the shape of a cliff. From the top of this "cliff" Peter gallantly leads Russia forward, while his horse steps on a snake, which represents the enemies of Peter and his reforms.