The Mordovian Republican Museum of Fine Arts named after S. D. Erzi was founded in 1960. It includes the main building, the Museum of Mordovian Folk Culture, and the Exhibition Hall. The museum also has branches: the S. D. Erzi House Museum in the village of Baevo and the F. V. Sychkov House Museum in the village of Kochelaevo.

The main building features permanent exhibitions dedicated to the works of the famous 20th-century sculptor S. D. Erzi, the artist F. V. Sychkov, known as the painter of the 'joy of existence', and the academic portrait painter I. K. Makarov. The museum's collection includes over 15,000 exhibits, including works of Russian and contemporary domestic art, as well as decorative and applied arts and works by artists from Mordovia. All exhibitions are equipped with touch information panels with bilingual navigation and audio guides. The museum operates a Virtual Branch of the State Russian Museum.

The collection of folk and decorative applied art from Russia and Mordovia was gathered through scientific expeditions to Mordovian villages and beyond the republic, involving almost all museum staff. As a result, the museum possesses a unique collection of Mordovian folk art, including a significant collection of folk costumes.

In 1985, the museum's collection was enriched with valuable finds from the II Staro-Badikovsky burial ground, excavated by I. M. Peterburgsky and V. N. Shitov in 1983 and 1984. This burial ground, dated to the 7th-11th centuries, is located in the southwest of Mordovia and belongs to the ancient Moksha tribes. The Shoksha burial ground from the 6th-11th centuries is located in the northwest of the republic and is associated with the Ryazan-Oka group of Finno-Ugric tribes.

Among the archaeological finds revealing the unique culture of the peoples of Mordovia, ancient jewelers' products hold a special place. The collection showcases a variety of techniques for making jewelry, such as forging, casting, embossing, stamping, engraving, and granulation. The primary material for jewelers was bronze, with alloys of silver with copper and gold with silver also used.

The museum has received various awards and has twice been a laureate of the State Prize of the Republic of Mordovia. In 2002, considering its social significance, the government of the republic recognized the museum as a particularly valuable object of the cultural heritage of the Mordovian people.

The museum is popular among residents of Saransk and the entire republic, as well as guests of the region. It is visited by more than 60,000 people annually.