Mikeshin himself was not a sculptor, therefore the 129 individual statues for the monument were made by the leading Russian sculptors of the day, including his friend  and the promising new sculptor, Alexander Opekushin.
Given that Mikeshin wasn't a sculptor himself, he relied on other skilled artists to create the 129 statues for the monument, including his friend Alexander Opekushin, who was emerging as a talented sculptor.