Mark Matveevich Antokolsky was a prominent sculptor of Jewish descent, one of the greatest masters of realistic sculpture of the second half of the 19th century. He was born in Vilnius and began his career with wood carving. Through the patronage of the wife of the Vilnius Governor-General, he entered the Imperial Academy of Arts as an auditor in 1862, where he studied under Nikolai Pimenov and Ivan Reimers. During his studies, he became close with Ivan Kramskoy, Vladimir Stasov, and Ilya Repin. In 1871, he received the title of academician for his statue "Ivan the Terrible", which was purchased for the Hermitage by Emperor Alexander II. He spent most of his life abroad, in Italy and France. At the World's Fair in Paris, he was awarded the highest award, the Legion of Honor (1878). From 1880 he was a professor, and from 1893 a full member of the Imperial Academy of Arts. He also became an honorary member of several European academies. Mark Antokolsky is the author of famous sculptural images: "Ivan the Terrible", "Peter I", "Christ on Trial before the People", "Mephistopheles", as well as portraits of Ivan Turgenev, Sergey Botkin, and members of the imperial family. Monuments to Peter I, erected in Peterhof, St. Petersburg, Taganrog, and Arkhangelsk, were created based on his models. The Bakhrushin Theatre Museum collection includes photographs featuring Mark Antokolsky.