The Literary Museum of the Institute of Russian Literature houses a collection of portraits and memorabilia of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov, grandson of Emperor Nicholas I and President of the Imperial Academy of Sciences. Konstantin Romanov published poems under the pseudonym K.R. Furthermore, he was a playwright, translator, musician and stage director. He corresponded with many prominent writers and cultural figures of his time. Among them were Fyodor Dostoevsky, Ivan Goncharov, Apollon Maykov, Afanasy Fet, Yakov Polonsky and others.

The Grand Duke played an important role in organizing the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Alexander Pushkin in 1899, and in 1905 supported the idea of establishing an institution in St. Petersburg dedicated to the study of the poet’s life and legacy. Subsequently, this institution became the Pushkin House, and Konstantin Romanov was its august patron until the end of his life.

Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich died in June 1915 in his office in the Pavlovsk palace. His funeral service was held in the palace church. He was the last of the Romanovs who died before the Russian Revolution. He was buried in the grand burial vault of the Peter and Paul Fortress.

The Grand Duke is depicted sitting at a desk in his office in the Konstantin Palace in Strelna. Dressed in a simple black French jacket without insignia, he looks like an inspired poet, who for a moment looks up from his writings and stares intently at the viewer. In front of him is an open book, which is a gift edition of “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”, — Konstantin Konstantinovich translated this play in 1899. In the upper right corner is the signature of the artist who indicated the date he completed the painting: “Strelna. June 29, 1906. A. Leontovsky“.

This painting from the Pushkin House is the second portrait of Konstantin Konstantinovich, made by Leontovsky. The first one, from 1901, is located in the Artillery Museum in St. Petersburg. Apparently, the Grand Duke was the patron of the artist, who came from a military family. In 1906, he commissioned a portrait of his wife, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mavrikievna, which is now kept in the Mikhail Vrubel Omsk Museum.