­Fighting corruption has long been the favourite hobby-horse of Russia’s ruling ‘tandem’. Now, President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin can be seen battling this ancient scourge of the nation in grandiose style on horseback.

A display in St. Petersburg’s Museum of Wax Figures shows the pair mounted on a trusty steed, trampling the snake of corruption. Dmitry Medvedev is in front, pointing ahead with his right hand, while his potential successor sits behind him, left arm outstretched in a gesture reminiscent of Peter the Great.

Special plaques confirm that the figures indeed represent the president and prime minister.

In another scene, the leaders are also fighting corruption: this time, the president is portrayed as a judge in wig and robes deciding the fate of a corrupt official, while the premier waits on in camouflage, wielding an axe.

In an interesting philosophical twist, a third composition depicts the duo as a two-faced Janus.

A figure of Dmitry Medvedev first appeared in the museum on the eve of the 2008 presidential election. His image stood between the deceased Mayor of St. Petersburg Anatoly Sobchak and then President Vladimir Putin, suggesting that authority in Russia comes from St. Petersburg.