What is lomonosov famous for

Mikhail Lomonosov: The ‘Russian Da Vinci’

A monument to Mikhail Lomonosov near the main building of the Moscow State University.

Mikhail Lomonosov was born in 1711 in the Arkhangelsk Region in the far north of Russia (615 miles north of Moscow). His father was a wealthy peasant fisherman who, like his ancestors, was involved in maritime commerce. Lomonosov remembered his father as a kind man but «brought up in extreme ignorance,» which no one would say about Lomonosov himself. He enjoyed studying even as a child, and mastered several scientific textbooks while still living in his village.

The pursuit of knowledge

Gradually, village life became unbearable for the youth, He quarreled with his stepmother, and rebelled against his father’s desire for him to marry. In 1730, he ran off to Moscow with a string of fish carts and entered the Slavic Greek Latin Academy. Peasant children were not admitted to the academy, so Lomonosov introduced himself as a «nobleman’s son.»

The academy’s administration easily believed that the young man was an aristocrat, since he knew how to read and write and had a solid understanding of mathematics. Officially, Lomonosov received his noble title in 1745, along with the rank of Chemistry Professor.

A polymath

Mikhail Lomonosov in 1757. Portrait by Christian-Albert Wortmann and Etienne Fessard / Archive photo

Lomonosov’s education spanned decades. He studied in Moscow, Kiev, St. Petersburg, and in the German towns of Marburg and Freiberg, mastering dozens of subjects, from philosophy to metallurgy. In all his later activity, the scientist maintained this diversity of disciplines, simultaneously pursuing many fields of research. He considered chemistry his main vocation, though.

Lomonosov is known as a polymath and is often compared to Leonardo da Vinci, so broad was his sphere of interests and activities. He perfected glass-making technology; developed physics and chemistry theories; worked in the fields of astronomy and geography; wrote grammar textbooks, historical works and odes; translated poetry; and created mosaics.

The scientist also founded Moscow University (1755), which today bears his name and is considered one of the best universities in Russia.

Ahead of his time

In 1901, 136 years after Lomonosov’s death, geology professor Vasily Dokuchaev, encountering one of the scientist’s papers, said in amazement, «A long time ago, Lomonosov described in his research the theory I defended in my PhD dissertation, and he described it in a broader manner.»

There are other examples of how Lomonosov was ahead of his time. In 1761, he discovered that the planet Venus had an atmosphere, which he observed through a telescope. In 1754, after reviewing documents at the Academy of Sciences, he developed a working model of a proto-helicopter, a flying apparatus that could take off vertically with two propellers. And his corpuscular-kinetic theory of heat in many ways anticipated ideas of atoms that appeared one hundred years later, just like his theory on rotating spherical particles.

A severe northern character

According to contemporaries, he was not a quiet laboratory scientist. In his article on Lomonosov, Moscow State University docent Grigory Pruttskov wrote that Lomonosov ardently fought against German dominance at the Academy of Sciences while he was working there.

Lomonosov was not afraid of showing his temper even during arguments with his influential patron Ivan Shuvalov, one of Elizabeth of Russia’s favorites. Once Shuvalov, in the heat of an argument, yelled at the scientist, «I’ll have you removed from the Academy!» Lomonosov proudly retorted, «If anything, it is the Academy that will be removed from me.»

Pushkin’s enthusiasm for Lomonosov

The man from the north had many foes, including in high society. Alexander Sumarokov, one of the most talented poets and playwrights of the time, was constantly at odds with Lomonosov. Their relations were so poor that after Lomonosov’s death in 1765 from pneumonia, Sumarokov said that, «The fool has finally calmed down and won’t make any more noise.»

But great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, who was born after the scientist’s death, had a completely different opinion of him. «Lomonosov was a great man. Between Peter I and Catherine II, he was the only advocate of Enlightenment. He established Russia’s first university. Or better, he was our first university.»

Mikhail Lomonosov

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Mikhail Lomonosov, in full Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov, (born November 19 [November 8, Old Style], 1711, near Kholmogory, Russia—died April 15 [April 4], 1765, St. Petersburg), Russian poet, scientist, and grammarian who is often considered the first great Russian linguistics reformer. He also made substantial contributions to the natural sciences, reorganized the St. Petersburg Imperial Academy of Sciences, established in Moscow the university that today bears his name, and created the first coloured glass mosaics in Russia.

Lomonosov was the son of a poor fisherman. At the age of 10 he too took up that line of work. When the few books he was able to obtain could no longer satisfy his growing thirst for knowledge, in December 1730, he left his native village, penniless and on foot, for Moscow. His ambition was to educate himself to join the learned men on whom the tsar Peter I the Great was calling to transform Russia into a modern nation.

The clergy and the nobility, attached to their privileges and fearing the spread of education and science, actively opposed the reforms of which Lomonosov was a lifelong champion. His bitter struggle began as soon as he arrived in Moscow. In order to be admitted to the Slavonic–Greek–Latin Academy, he had to conceal his humble origin; the sons of nobles jeered at him, and he had scarcely enough money for food and clothes. But his robust health and exceptional intelligence enabled him in five years to assimilate the eight-year course of study; during this time he taught himself Greek and read the philosophical works of antiquity.

Noticed at last by his instructors, in January 1736 Lomonosov became a student at the St. Petersburg Academy. Seven months later he left for Germany to study at the University of Marburg, where he led the turbulent life of the German student. His work did not suffer, however, for within three years he had surveyed the main achievements of Western philosophy and science. His mind, freed from all preconception, rebelled at the narrowness of the empiricism in which the disciples of Isaac Newton had bound the natural sciences; in dissertations sent to St. Petersburg, he attacked the problem of the structure of matter.

In 1739, in Freiberg, Lomonosov studied firsthand the technologies of mining, metallurgy, and glassmaking. Also friendly with the poets of the time, he freely indulged the love of verse that had arisen during his childhood with the reading of Psalms. The “Ode,” dedicated to the empress, and the Pismo o pravilakh rossiyskogo stikhotvorstva (“Letter Concerning the Rules of Russian Versification”) made a considerable impression at court.

After breaking with one of his masters, the chemist Johann Henckel, and many other mishaps, among which his marriage at Marburg must be included, Lomonosov returned in July 1741 to St. Petersburg. The Academy, which was directed by foreigners and incompetent nobles, gave the young scholar no precise assignment, and the injustice aroused him. His violent temper and great strength sometimes led him to go beyond the rules of propriety, and in May 1743 he was placed under arrest. Two odes sent to the empress Elizabeth won him his liberation in January 1744, as well as a certain poetic prestige at the Academy.

While in prison he worked out the plan of work that he had already developed in Marburg. The 276 zametok po fizike i korpuskulyarnoy filosofi (“276 Notes on Corpuscular Philosophy and Physics”) set forth the dominant ideas of his scientific work. Appointed a professor by the Academy in 1745, he translated Christian Wolff’s Institutiones philosophiae experimentalis (“Studies in Experimental Philosophy”) into Russian and wrote, in Latin, important works on the Meditationes de Caloris et Frigoris Causa (1747; “Cause of Heat and Cold”), the Tentamen Theoriae de vi Aëris Elastica (1748; “Elastic Force of Air”), and the Theoria Electricitatis (1756; “Theory of Electricity”). His friend, the celebrated Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler, recognized the creative originality of his articles, which were, on Euler’s advice, published by the Russian Academy in the Novye kommentari.

In 1748 the laboratory that Lomonosov had been requesting since 1745 was granted him; it then began a prodigious amount of activity. He passionately undertook many tasks and, courageously facing ill will and hostility, recorded in three years more than 4,000 experiments in his Zhurnal laboratori, the results of which enabled him to set up a coloured glass works and to make mosaics with these glasses. Slovo o polze khimi (1751; “Discourse on the Usefulness of Chemistry”), the Pismo k I.I. Shuvalovu o polze stekla (1752; “Letter to I.I. Shuvalov Concerning the Usefulness of Glass”), and the “Ode” to Elizabeth celebrated his fruitful union of abstract and applied science. Anxious to train students, he wrote in 1752 an introduction to the physical chemistry course that he was to set up in his laboratory. The theories on the unity of natural phenomena and the structure of matter that he set forth in the discussion on the Slovo o proiskhozhdeni sveta (1756; “Origin of Light and Colours”) and in his theoretical works on electricity in 1753 and 1756 also matured in this laboratory.

Encouraged by the success of his experiments in 1760, Lomonosov inserted in the Meditationes de Solido et Fluido (“Reflections on the Solidity and Fluidity of Bodies”) the “universal law of nature”—that is, the law of conservation of matter and energy, which, with the corpuscular theory, constitutes the dominant thread in all his research.

To these achievements were added the composition of Rossiyskaya grammatika and of Kratkoy rossiyskoy letopisets (“Short Russian Chronicle”), ordered by the empress, and all the work of reorganizing education, to which Lomonosov accorded much importance.

From 1755 he followed very closely the development of Moscow State University (now Moscow M.V. Lomonosov State University), for which he had drawn up the plans. Appointed a councillor by the Academy in 1757, he undertook reforms to make the university an intellectual centre closely linked with the life of the country. To that end, he wrote several scholarly works including Rassuzhdeniye o bolshoy tochnosti morskogo puti (1759; “Discussion of the Great Accuracy of the Maritime Route”); Rassuzhdeniye o proiskhozhdenii ledyanykh gor v severnykh moryakh (1760; “Discussion of the Formation of Icebergs in the Northern Seas”); Kratkoye opisaniye raznykh puteshestviy po severnym moryam… (1762–63; “A Short Account of the Various Voyages in the Northern Seas”); and O sloyakh zemnykh (1763; “Of the Terrestrial Strata”), which constituted an important contribution both to science and to the development of commerce and the exploitation of mineral wealth.

Despite the honours that came to him, he continued to lead a simple and industrious life, surrounded by his family and a few friends. He left his house and the laboratory erected in his garden only to go to the Academy. His prestige was considerable in Russia, and his scientific works and his role in the Academy were known abroad. He was a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and of that of Bologna. His theories concerning heat and the constitution of matter were opposed by the empiricist scientists of Germany, although they were analyzed with interest in European scientific journals.

Russia’s Famous People. Mikhail Lomonosov

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Russia’s Famous People

All over the world Russia is famous for its cultural life. It is literature, music and art. Among Russia’s famous people there are writers, poets, artists, composers, scientists, sportsmen and others.

The best–known Russian writers and poets are Aleksander Pushkin (the 2d in the picture), Michail Lermontov, Sergey Esenin, Nicolay Gogol, Ivan Turgenev, Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Anton Chekhov, Boris Pasternak and others. They are popular throughout the world.

The greatest Russian composers are Aleksander Borodin, Modest Musorgsky, Nicolay Rimsky-Korsakov, and Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky (the 3d in the picture).

The outstanding Russian artists and painters are Isaak Levitan, Repin, Vasnetsov, Shishkin, Surikov. Their pictures are exhibited in the Tretyakov Gallery, which is one of the most famous and well-known picture gallery in our country and in the world.

The first cosmonaut on the Earth, Yuri Gagarin (the 4th in the picture) was from Russia and he made his flight into space on the 12 th of April in 1961.

The father of Russian science is Mikhail Lomonosov (the 1st in the picture). He was also an outstanding poet and the founder of Russian literature. He founded the first Russian university.

Mikhail Lomonosov. Text

The Russian scientist Mikhail Vasilievich Lomonosov was born in 1711, in the village of Denisovka near the town of Kholmogory, Arkhangelsk Gubernia, in the family of fisherman.

As soon as he learned to read, little Mikhail read all the books he could get in his village. At the age of 17 he left his native place, and made his way to Moscow. In Moscow he successfully entered the Slav-Greek-Latin Academy, the only higher educational institution in Moscow at that time.

Neither conditions of work nor material difficulties discouraged young Lomonosov. His brilliant capabilities and hard work enabled him to complete the seven-grade curriculum of the Academy in four years.

A year later he came to Petersburg, and then was sent abroad to study metallurgy and mining.

In 1741, after his return to Russia, Lomonosov became a Professor of Chemistry and a full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Lomonosov was a man of unusual abilities. He made great achievements in the spheres of physics, chemistry, astronomy, geology, geography, linguistics and history. Among the numerous discoveries of Lomonosov was the Law of the Conservation of Mass (закон сохранения энергии).

Lomonosov himself considered chemistry his “main profession”, but he was at the same time the first Russian physicist. He gave all his energy to the promotion of Russian science. In 1755 thanks to his efforts the Moscow University was founded. The university became a major centre of Russian enlightenment and science.

Mikhail Lomonosov was the most famous person in the 18 th century. He died in 1765 at the age of 54.

The list of Russia’s famous people will be continued soon. Now you can read more about Russia.

Mikhail Lomonosov

Lomonosov’s first journey to Moscow

At the, Moscow had temporarily became Russia’s capital once again, after Emperor Peter II reigned as Emperor of Russia from 1727 until his death in 1730 had moved there for hunting, and was followed by his imperial court. The city became more animated, opening up numerous opportunities for young people to prove themselves and obtain a career.

Moscow university during the reign of empresses Elizabeth and Catherine

Lomonosov left St. Petersburg for Europe and travelled extensively there before returning to St. Petersburg, where he lived for most of his life. Lomonosov frequented the imperial court and often met with Empress Elizabeth and her lover, Count Ivan Shuvalov. The empress bestowed a noble title on Lomonosov and helped him to climb the ranks of society. During these years, he made major discoveries in physics and chemistry, established a glass-making workshop, gained fame as an inventor of optic devices, became a professor at the Academy of Sciences and authored many well-known works of poetry. At the same time, Lomonosov contributed much to the development of public education. The Moscow university was the first large-scale project launched by Lomonosov and Count Shuvalov; in 1754, they presented a joint report to the Senate a legislative, judicial, and executive body of the Russian Emperors concerning its establishment, and the university was inaugurated the following year, in April 1755.

The cold and rundown facilities were not appropriate for living or studying and Lomonosov repeatedly came to Moscow from St. Petersburg and voiced to the court his concerns about the students’ living conditions. Empress Catherine II purchased Repin’s House Russian: dom Repina or дом Репина on Nikitskaya Street Russian: Nikitskaya ulitsa or Никитская улица and handed it over to the university, along with some other lots and estates in the area around Nikitskaya and Mokhovaya Russian: Моховая Streets that were to have university buildings built upon them. Shortly after Lomonosov’s death, the Moscow University moved to a new custom-made building (Block 1, 11, Mokhovaya Street).

The first church near the Kazakov Building at 11, Mokhovaya Street, burned down in 1812. The modern church (at 1, Bolshaya Nikitskaya Russian: Большая Никитская Street) was built by E. Tyurin. This elegant structure seems to bring together university buildings, the Manezh Russian: Манеж and Red Square and does not actually look like a church at all. The main entrance to the church from the side of Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street doesn’t stand out from the surround architecture, either. In contrast with traditional Orthodox architecture, this church is an Empire-style semi-rotunda with a columned external façade rather than the usual cross-domed church.

Along with the heritage of world-famous people and great museums, there are many attractions in Moscow, which are not so popular, but still very remarkable. Beautiful temples in the Orthodox style, the unusual architecture of the Russian Middle Ages or the recent Soviet era, ballet and drama theaters – on our website you can learn more about Moscow sightseeing.

Moscow state university in the 20 th and 21 st centuries and memory of Mikhail Lomonosov

Prominent Russians: Mikhail Lomonosov

Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov was the first Russian scientist-naturalist of universal importance. He was a poet who laid the foundation of modern Russian literary language, an artist, an historian and an advocate of development of domestic education, science and economy. In 1748 he founded the first Russian chemical laboratory at the Academy of Sciences. On his initiative the Moscow University was founded in 1755.

The scientific discoveries of Lomonosov enriched many branches of knowledge. Among his amazing heritage are the following discoveries and ideas:

• He regarded heat as a form of motion;

• He suggested the wave theory of light;

• He contributed to the formulation of the kinetic theory of gases;

• He stated the idea of conservation of matter in the following words: “All changes in nature are such that inasmuch is taken from one object insomuch is added to another.

• In 1748, Lomonosov created a mechanical explanation of gravitation;

• Lomonosov was the first person to record the freezing of Mercury;

• He was also the first to hypothesize the existence of an atmosphere on Venus based on his observation of the transit of Venus of 1761;

• Believing that nature is subject to regular and continuous evolution, he demonstrated the organic origin of soil, peat, coal, petroleum and amber. In 1745, he published a catalogue of over 3,000 minerals;

• In 1760, he explained the formation of icebergs;

• As a geographer, Lomonosov got close to the theory of continental drift, theoretically predicted the existence of Antarctica and invented sea tools which made writing and calculating directions and distances easier;

• Lomonosov was proud to restore the ancient art of mosaics;

• He wrote more than 20 solemn ceremonial odes, notably the “Evening Meditation on God’s Grandeur”;

• In 1755, he reformed the Russian literary language by combining Old Church Slavonic with the vernacular; ´

To be more precise, Lomonosov developed the atomic-molecular conception of substance structure. During the domination of the teplorod theory he asserted that heat is caused by movement of corpuscles. Lomonosov formulated the principle of matter and movement conservation. He excluded phlogiston from chemical agents and laid the basis of physical chemistry. Lomonosov examined atmospheric electricity and gravity. He put forward the color doctrine. He created a number of optical devices. During a transit of Venus across the Sun on 26 May 1761 Lomonosov discovered that Venus possessed an atmosphere. He described the structure of Earth, explained the origin of treasures of the soil and minerals, and published a manual on metallurgy. He emphasized the importance of the North Sea route in research and development of Siberia. A supporter of deism, he materialistically examined natural phenomena.

Lomonosov was the author of works on Russian history. He was the greatest Russian poet-enlightener of the 18th century, one of the founders of syllabic-tonic versification. Lomonosov was the founder of philosophical and Russian odes of high civil character. The author of poems, epistles, tragedies, satires, fundamental philological works and scientific grammar of Russian, he also revived the art of mosaic and production of smalt, creating mosaic pictures in cooperation with his pupils. He became a member of the Academy of Arts in 1763.

Lomonosov was born in the village of Mishaninsk not far from Kholinogory, near the White Sea. This region along the northern coast of Russia was separated from the rest of the country by vast forests and swamps, nearly impassible in summer, but easily crossed when frozen in winter. The inhabitants of this isolated region had never been exposed to the Tatar conquest nor to the institution of serfdom, which had affected much of the rest of Russia. They were, however, in close contact with foreign trade and traders; their ports of Archangel and Kholmogory were the main gateways through which foreign goods from Western Europe reached Russia. As a result, most of the natives of this region, though classed as peasants, were far more independent and progressive than their counterparts in more southerly areas.

Lomonosov was taught reading and writing early and was an avid reader. In 1724 he received the books “Grammar” by Smotritsky, “Arithmetics” by Magnitsky and “Rhyme Psalm-book” by Semeon Polotsky, which he subsequently called the gates of his erudition. He was the son of a fisherman. Although the boy accompanied his father on fishing excursions and trading expeditions, he was not happy at home. His mother had died when he was still very young, and his father had married twice afterward, his second wife having also died early. The stepmother considered Lomonosov lazy because of his constant reading, and he reported later that he “was obliged to read and study, when possible, in lonely and desolate places and to endure cold and hunger.” Therefore when he was nineteen, he resolved to go to Moscow to seek further education.

Entering the world of science

Lomonosov had tried to enter Kholmogorsk School but being a fisherman’s son, he had been rejected. In Moscow he chose to conceal his poor background in order to gain entrance. After a three-month journey on foot, in 1730 Lomonosov entered the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy, where in 1735 he studied the penultimate course of “philosophy.” In 1734 he listened to lectures at the Kievo-Mogilyanskaya Academy and studied the Ukrainian language and culture. Mastering the Latin and Greek languages he was exposed to the riches of antique and European culture. After returning from Kiev he was sent with other students to St. Petersburg as a student of the university at the Academy of Sciences.

After graduating from the Academy, Lomonosov was sent to study mining in Saxony. He studied mineralogy and chemistry in Germany, first at Marburg University and then at the Freiburg Academy. There he gained extensive knowledge in the fields of physics and chemistry, and studied German, French, Italian and English, which enabled him to get acquainted with the literature of the time. Abroad Lomonosov worked in the field of Russian poetry and created the harmonious theory of the Russian syllabic-tonic verse, which was presented by him in “Letter on rules of Russian versification” and which is still in use today. He understood that there wasn’t a uniform Russian literary language or a uniform Russian culture. He decided to do everything possible to lay the foundations of new Russian culture, science, literature and literary language. In 1742, after returning to Russia, Lomonosov was appointed junior scientific assistant to the Academy of Sciences in physics and in 1745 became the first Russian elected to a professorial post. He was appointed to a physics position at the St. Petersburg Academy of Science. The Academy was highly respected in Europe. It was staffed at this time mainly by foreign scientists, for example Lehmann.

On 6 June 1740 he married Elizabeth Zilch, the daughter of a former city councilor of Marburg. The marriage was kept secret for several years, perhaps because he feared that the authorities would not approve of the foreign marriage. At last he was able to get in touch with the Academy in St. Petersburg and received an official recall to the capital. He reached it on 8 June 1741. It was not until 1744 that he felt able to send for his wife, who rejoined him in the summer of that year.

Achievements in literature

In spite of his difficulties in Germany, he had been able to complete several dissertations on scientific subjects and to begin to compose the odes that later brought him fame as a poet. The high regard for his abilities attested by his favorable reports from Wolff, Duising and even Henkel, made a deep impression at the Academy, and soon after his return he was made adjunct in the Class of Physical Science. His salary was 360 rubles a year, an ample sum at the time, but unfortunately the Academy had no funds to pay it, and so he was given the privilege of buying books at the Academy bookshop for a nominal sum and then selling them for whatever he could get. After breaking with one of his masters, the chemist Johann Henckel, and many other mishaps, Lomonosov returned in July 1741 to St. Petersburg.

The Academy, which was directed by foreigners and incompetent nobles, gave the young scholar no precise assignment, and the injustice insulted him. His violent temper and great strength sometimes led him to go beyond the rules of propriety, and in May 1743 he was placed under arrest. Two odes sent to Empress Elizabeth won him his liberation in January 1744, as well as a certain poetic prestige at the Academy.

Working in the Academy of Science

Affairs at the Academy at this time were in a very confused state. Schumacher had been running the Academy in a very despotic fashion and had favored the German members at every turn; Russia was then governed by Biron, the incompetent favorite of Empress Anne, but when she died the throne was taken by Elizabeth II, daughter of Peter the Great, and Biron fell from power. The enemies of Schumacher (and he had many) were then able to attack him openly and finally bring about his arrest.

Lomonosov sympathized with Schumacher’s opponents, since as a patriotic Russian he felt that the German party had gained too much power in the Academy. He believed that Schumacher himself was responsible for many of the difficulties that had occurred. His own position was not too strong, for he himself was engaged in quarrels with various employees of the Academy, sometimes resulting in physical violence. As a result he was placed under house arrest and was freed only after a public apology.

Schumacher was soon cleared of the charges against him and resumed his former position of authority. After this, however, there was constant discord between the two men, and their struggles for advantage greatly interfered with Lomonosov’s later scientific activities. His “Russian Grammar,” which defined features of Russian literary language, was the first real Russian grammar; “Eloquence compendium” is a course of general theory of literature. The treatise “About benefits of church books in Russian language” is the first experience in Russian stylistics.

Poetry occupied an important place in the life of Lomonosov: “Conversation with Anakreon” and “The Hymn to Beard.” He also wrote the plays “Tamira and Selim” and “Demofont” and numerous odes.

The Moscow University and lifelong devotion to science

Concerned about the distribution of education in Russia, Lomonosov insisted on the creation of a Russian University of European style accessible to all social groups of the population. His efforts were crowned with success in 1755. On his project there was founded the university in Moscow. Nowadays this University (Moscow State University) is one of the most prestigious universities in Russia and carries Lomonosov’s name. Lomonosov did much for the development of Russian science, which gave rise to Russian scientists and professors who in turn could teach at the university.

The last years of Lomonosov’s life were not happy ones. He was plagued with debts from the factory at Ust Ruditsky and by almost constant ill health. His quarrels with his colleagues became ever bitterer. During his final illness he gave way to pessimism, saying: “I see that I must die and I look on death peacefully and indifferently. I regret only that I was unable to bring to completion everything I undertook for the benefit of my country, for the increase of learning and for the greater glory of the Academy, and now, at the end of my life, I realize that all my good intentions will vanish with me.” Despite the honors that came to him, he continued to lead a simple and industrious life, surrounded by his family and a few friends. His prestige was considerable in Russia, and his scientific works and his role in the Academy were known abroad. Lomonosov was well regarded by contemporary European scientists. He was made an honorary member of the Swedish Academy of Science in 1760 and became an honorary member of the Bologna Academy of Science in 1764. Lomonosov is memorialized in many place names –for example, an Arctic submarine ridge, an Atlantic current and more.

In the spring of 1765 Lomonosov caught a cold, fell ill with pneumonia and died. He was buried at Lazarevskoye Cemetery in the Aleksandro-Nevskaya Lavra (Monastery) in St. Petersburg.

Empress Catherine II the Great had the patriotic scholar buried with great ceremony, but she confiscated all the notes in which were outlined the great humanitarian ideas he had developed. Publications of his works were censored as material that constituted a menace to the system of serfdom, particularly that concerned with materialist and humanist ideas. Efforts were made to view him as a court poet and an upholder of monarchy and religion rather than as an enemy of superstition and a champion of popular education.

In 1948 Oranienbaum, a town in the outskirts of St. Petersburg, was renamed Lomonosov. The Chernyshev Bridge, Chernyshev Square and Chernyshev Lane also took his name. Lomonosovskaya metro station and some industrial companies (including Lomonosov Porcelain Plant) were named after Lomonosov. In 1949 the Lomonosov Museum was opened in the building of Kunstkammer, where the scientist had worked from 1741. A bust of Lomonosov was installed on Lomonosov Square in 1892 (sculptor P.P. Zabello, architect Lytkin) and in 1986 a statue of the great scientist was erected at Universitetskaya Embankment (sculptor Petrov and architect Sveshnikov).

Written by Tatyana Klevantseva, RT

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