Mother Motherland

Mother land in Russia

Also called Motherland Calls, this statue of a woman raising her sword to the sky commemorates the Battle of Stalingrad and serves as a symbol of victory during the WWII battle, in which the Red Army defeated the German troops. The statue’s name more literally translates to “the Motherland that gave birth to me is calling,” referring to the allegorical Mother Russia.

At the time of construction, the monument was the tallest sculpture in the world, at 85 meters (279 feet) tall, weighing a heft 8,000 tons. The 200 steps to the base of the statue symbolize the 200 days that the battle endured.
The sculptor, Yevgeny Vuchetich, used local model Valentina Izotova as the basis for the sculpture. The sculpture’s hasty construction and the site’s rising water levels have caused the statue to lean considerably over time, prompting concerns that it may collapse. The city is now working to restore it to its upright position.