The museum of national significance, which has already celebrated its centenary, keeps a number of evidences of Russia’s political life from the late 18th till the early 21st century. The Museum collection counts over 460,000 items. They reflect the history of the state system reforming, fates of the most prominent historical figures, processes of development of revolutionary, democratic, social and political movements and parties.

Among the most remarkable exhibits there are documents concerning the legislative activities of Catherine the Great and S. Vitte’s and P. Stolypin’s  reforming activities, items referring to the epoch of the Great Reforms carried out by Alexander II and objects telling about three Russian revolutions. A big volume of unique materials reveals the activities of supreme state organs of the Russian Empire, the USSR, and  the Russian Federation. Documents also remind us of central state, legislative and executive branches of power: the State Dumas of all 7 convocations, State and Supreme Councils and Soviets, local governments.

In the Museum collection there are political parties’ materials representing practically the whole range of political forces in modern Russia at both federal and regional levels. In the last few years this unique collection has been enlarged with materials reflecting the activities of state, political and public leaders, members of both Chambers of the Russian Parliament, the Legislative Assembly of Saint-Petersburg and Leningrad and some other regions.

The following static exhibitions are active in the museum: “Man and Power in Russia in the 19th – 21st Centuries”, “Soviet Epoch: Between Utopia And Reality”, “Matilda Kshesinskaya: Fouettes of Fate”.