[1] The original 200 stairs were commissioned by Prince Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov, the regional governor-general, as both a gift to his wife Elisabeth and to gain support from the local elites, many of whom lived at the top of the future staircase along Prymorskyi Boulevard.

[1][2] As erosion destroyed the stairs, in 1933 the sandstone was replaced by rose-grey granite from the Boh area, and the landings were covered with asphalt.

Eight steps were lost under the sand when the port was being extended, reducing the number of stairs to 192, with ten landings.

[20] At the top of the stairs is the Duke de Richelieu Monument, depicting Odesa's town governor.

It is the first monument erected in the city,[21][22] and memorializes him for the period of growth and prosperity he led during the 11 years of his administration.

[23] A flight of steps unequalled in magnificence, leads down the declivity to the shore and harbour[24]This expensive and useless toy, is likely to cost nearly forty thousand pounds.

[25]One of the great sights of Odessa is the staircase street that extends from the harbor shore to the end of the fine boulevard at the top of the hill.

It is an ill-conceived design if intended for ornament; its utility is more than doubtful and its execution defective, that its fall is already anticipated.