On June 29, 2018, Russian Post issued a series of 4 stamps dedicated to the Moscow Metro.

The Moscow Metro opened on May 15, 1935.

Many stations of the Moscow Metro are architectural monuments. Famous architects, builders and artists took part in the design and decoration of the metro stations. Here, engineering thought and artistic inspiration were harmoniously combined.

The 2018 postage stamps are dedicated to the mosaic art of the Moscow Metro.

The postage stamps depict works of monumental art (mosaics) at the stations of the Moscow Metro:

— Z.K. Tsereteli. "Victory in the War of 1812", (metro station "Park Pobedy");
— P.D. Korin. "Alexander Nevsky", (metro station "Komsomolskaya");
— A.A. Deineka. "A Day in the Soviet Sky", (Mayakovskaya metro station);
— S.V. Goryaev. "The Church of St. Tryphon", (Maryina Roshcha metro station).

Komsomolskaya metro station

The great Russian artist Pavel Dmitrievich Korin took part in the design of the Komsomolskaya metro station. It was according to his sketches that 8 magnificent mosaic panels were made, decorating the ceiling of the station.

All the paintings are united by one theme - the victories of Russian arms. The mosaics depict Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry Donskoy, Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky, Alexander Suvorov, Mikhail Kutuzov, the Capture of the Reichstag and the Triumph of Victory.

Huge sparkling paintings made of colored stones and smalt - opaque colored glass - have immortalized the victories of Russian arms and the victories of the Russian spirit for many years.

The area of ​​each mosaic panel is 30 sq. m, weight - 3 tons, the number of set elements - 300 thousand pieces.

Pavel Dmitrievich Korin carefully treated all the details of the mosaicists' work and especially carefully monitored the set of portrait images. Work on sketches and the production of mosaics were carried out in 1951-1952, the station itself opened on January 30, 1952.

Mosaic "Alexander Nevsky"

The very first in chronological order is the mosaic "Alexander Nevsky"

The artist already turned to the image of Alexander Nevsky in 1942, when he painted his famous triptych of the same name. Even then, the image of Nevsky was thought out to the smallest detail. Pavel Dmitrievich studied in detail the armor and weapons of that time, made dozens of sketches in the Historical Museum. And as a result, he created a convincing portrait of the warrior prince, the defender of the Russian land, fully corresponding not only to the artistic concept of the picture, but also to the historical truth.

The artist transfers some of this to the mosaic - Nevsky here, as in the painting, is depicted under a banner with the face of the Savior, with a scarlet cloak thrown over his shoulders, and the Cathedral of St. Sophia of Novgorod is visible in the background. However, here Korin refuses any psychologism of the image, or precise detailing of the armor, in a mosaic this would not only be unattainable, but also unnecessary. On the contrary, Korin enhances the decorative element, solemn and festive, emphasizing it with a shimmering golden background, Alexander's fluttering bright cloak, and shining armor.

The mosaics on Komsomolskaya are a triumph of victory, the triumph and joy of people who survived and won a difficult war. And here Alexander Nevsky rides out of the Novgorod citadel on a snow-white horse, and behind him follows the army, and behind their backs rises the white-stone Cathedral of St. Sophia.

The model of the Komsomolskaya-Koltsevaya station won the Grand Prix at the World Exhibition in Brussels in 1958. In addition to the assessment of the architectural project, the closest attention was paid to the "illustrative" part, represented by the mosaics of P.D. Korin.