In 1993, the administration of Nizhny Novgorod decided to install a monument in honor of Cyril and Methodius, the creators of the Slavic alphabet, on the Day of Slavic Writing and Culture. The monument was ceremoniously opened on May 24, 1994, also on the Day of Slavic Writing and Culture. Brothers Cyril and Methodius, canonized by the Orthodox Church, created one of the first Slavic alphabets, Glagolitic. Constantine, who took the monastic name Cyril, along with his brother Methodius and disciples Gorazd, Clement, Savva, Naum, and Angelar, developed the Slavic alphabet and translated church books into the Slavic language. Glagolitic was primarily used for recording church texts, such as the Kyiv Leaves. Eventually, it was replaced by the more convenient Cyrillic alphabet, which is still in use today. The project for the Commemorative Cross to Cyril and Methodius, which won the competition, was created by the renowned Kursk sculptor and public figure Vladimir Mikhailovich Klykov, president of the Foundation for Slavic Writing and Culture. The sculpture is made of white limestone and features a rounded cross. At the top of the front side of the bas-relief is an image of the Trinity: in the center is God the Father, to the right is the Virgin Mary, and to the left is Jesus Christ. At the base of the cross are full-length images of Cyril and Methodius, and on the reverse side is engraved an inscription in Church Slavonic: 'In memory of our fathers, equal-to-the-apostles Methodius and Cyril, saints of the Slavs. Of you, we speak the word.' Initially, the cross was installed in the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin next to the Church of Archangel Michael, but in February 2008, it was moved to a park near the building of the Nizhny Novgorod administration. At the former site, a monument was erected to 'The Founder of the City, Saint Grand Duke George Vsevolodovich, and his mentor, Saint Simon, from the people of Nizhny Novgorod.' This arrangement of architectural objects created an axial line consisting of the cathedral, the monument, and the cross of varying heights.