Solovetsky Stone in Saint Petersburg

The Solovetsky Stone is a granite boulder on a polished base at Troitskaya Square in Saint Petersburg with inscriptions honoring victims of Soviet persecution. The memorial bears carved texts that speak to the darkest moments of that era.

The stone originates from the Solovki Islands, where the first Soviet Gulag camp was established in 1923. This location became a symbol for the network of political prisons and labor camps that expanded across the country.

The memorial displays a verse from Anna Akhmatova's poem Requiem, reflecting the suffering of millions who endured Soviet political repression. The stone stands as a mark for the experiences of ordinary people who lived through that difficult period in history.

The stone sits at Troitskaya Square near the Peter and Paul Fortress and is easy to reach on foot. The closest metro station is Gorkovskaya, which is just a short walk away.

The granite block weighed roughly 10 tonnes when it was transported from the Solovki Islands to Saint Petersburg. Moving this massive stone was a complex undertaking that underscored how far the memory of this history traveled from its place of origin.