A stone obelisk on the lower slopes of Mount Mashuk marks the spot where Mikhail Lermontov was killed in a duel on 15 July 1841. The site is about a kilometre from the city centre, reachable on foot. A small ceremonial grove surrounds the obelisk, and the approach path passes through parkland that preserves the feeling of the semi-wild edge of town as it would have been in Lermontov's time.
Russians treat this place with genuine reverence. On the anniversary of Lermontov's death in July, pilgrims and admirers come to leave flowers. Even outside that date, visitors arrive steadily throughout the summer. The site works best in combination with the house-museum and the cable car up Mashuk — a half-day Lermontov circuit through the park zone of the city.