The 'Motherland Calls' (Russian: Родина-мать зовёт! Rodina-Mat' zovyot!), is also called 'Mother Motherland', 'Mother Motherland Is Calling', 'The Motherland', or 'The Mamayev Monument'. It is a statue in Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, (formerly Stalingrad) Russia, and commemorates the Battle of Stalingrad. The figure itself measures 52 metres (170 feet) tall, with the sword being 33 metres (108 feet). Two hundred steps, symbolizing the 200 days of the Battle of Stalingrad, (from July 17, 1942, through February 2, 1943) lead from the bottom of the hill to the monument. We're talking BIG statuary! The slide show identifies specific statues' heights. Mother Russia is located at the top of Mamayev Kurgan, where she is the main monument of a memorial complex to those Soviets who fell in World War II. She represents the Motherland, or Russia. The statue appears on both the current flag and coat of arms of Volgograd Oblast. Made from concrete and steel, it took 3 years for the statue to be completed. She was officially dedicated on Oct. 15, 1967. The lead sculptor was Yevgeny Vuchetich. The significant structural engineering challenges of the 7,900 tons (7,800 long tons; 8,700 short tons) of the concrete sculpture were handled by Nikolai Nikitin. The Hall of Military Glory is a round building at the foot of the Mamayev Kurgan Memorial complex and contains an eternal flame, with walls of names of the dead. It is guarded by a soldier who stands at attention. The changing of the Guard occurs every hour and is quite a spectacle that involves high goose stepping Honor Guards. The total square footage of the memorial complex is sixty-five thousand square meters. As I understand it, a visitor enters the complex past the 'Singing Walls' then enters the Hall of Honor. From there walks the 'Square of Grief' and then along the Reflection pool via 'Lenin Avenue' On the right side of the Avenue are the huge sculptures of 'Heroes of the Battle'. From there, one passes a smaller pool and the sculpture of 'Fight to the Death'. Then the climbing of the 200 steps which are at least partially lined with wall scenes of the Battle and finally arrives at the Mamayev Kurgan...Motherland Calls. In May 2009 it was reported that rising water levels had caused the monument's foundations to sink and that the statue is leaning to such a degree that it is feared it will fall over. The leaning is rapidly getting worse. The statue is not fixed to its foundations and is held in place only by its weight. It has moved about 8 inches and is not expected to be able to move much farther without collapsing. While local authorities deny that the statue is in danger, conservation and restoration works started in 2010. This has been an exceptionally difficult topic to research. While pictures are plentiful, descriptions in English are not. Many of the articles I found were in Russian or had been translated by someone who was not fluent in English. In addition, I found almost every statue, every memorial, every building and walkway had several names which made it difficult to keep track of exactly what was where, etc. Thank you for watching and I hope you enjoy this slide show. Please be sure to check my other shows and tell your friends about my NiNaWavs2U channel on Youtube. I do not hold a copyright on either the pictures or the music used in this slide show. Be well! Nina

• published: 08 Jan 2013
• views: 6717