The Karl Marx statue on the similarly-named square is the second in this place. The monument to the author of "Capital" was first installed here in 1825. Moreover, the pedestal of another monument, to Catherine II, demolished by the Bolsheviks, was used as a base. In view of this, there was even a popular anecdote in Rostov-on-Don, that is: a weak-eyed old man comes to the monument of Karl Marx, examines it and says: "Oh, you have become so overgrown, my dear!"
The Karl Marx Monument has a tragic fate. The bronze statue of the philosopher, standing at a pile of books, was shot from a tank by German troops during the war. Only the memorial plaque on the monument survived - it was later transferred to the Rostov Museum, and the new monument to Marx appeared in the square in 1959. The sculpture was cast in Leningrad and installed on a granite pedestal. In our days the monument was unsuccessfully planned to be replaced by that of the empress of Russia. However, the Rostov public has defended the right of Marx to “reign” in the homonymous square.