Aleksei Musin-Pushkin

In 1772, when the General was discharged, at his own request, for health reasons, Musin-Pushkin went on an extended tour of Europe; visiting Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, and England.

[2] As an avid collector of historical memorabilia, he made a major acquisition in 1791; a large part of the Kryokshin Archives [ru], with documents from the reign of Peter the Great and Medieval manuscripts; including the Nikon Chronicle, as well as maps from the 16th and 17th centuries.

That same year, Empress Catherine the Great named him Procuror (representative) for the Holy Synod;[4] charging him with the collection of important documents and manuscripts from churches and monasteries throughout Russia.

During his tenure, he oversaw the construction of a new building, designed by Alexander Kokorinov and Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe.

[5] To help with finances, he proposed that students should pay half of the proceeds from the sale of their works to the Academy's treasury, but this was met with too much resistance.