Comparison of the statue of liberty and motherland calls. Statue Motherland in Volgograd

I sincerely hope that those who do not need this article, especially those under 30, are in the majority. I hope, but I don't really believe. But even if so, I publish it anyway for this minority. There is no such thing as too much patriotism.

So let's go:

If you ask the average resident of any country a question about the tallest statues in the world, he will most likely remember statues of Buddha carved from rocks, the Statue of Liberty in New York, the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio - well, the one from the series; perhaps someone will remember the Kolos of Rhodes - he, probably, was huge, why not remember ... And, perhaps, that's all. In Russia, the older generation will still remember Mamaev Kurgan, but not everyone will probably remember the Kyiv Motherland, at least in the context of the largest in the world. Where is ours to theirs, to the Western (with aspiration). Vaughn, Christ the Redeemer in 2007 was recognized as one of the seven New Wonders of the World, the Statue of Liberty in the finalists of contenders for this honorary title, And ours are not even close there. The Kremlin just got into the finalists of the applicants.

The Statue of Liberty. NY. Who has not dreamed of visiting Liberty Island or at least taking that famous free ferry and sailing right next to Liberty Island an infinite number of times. Yes, dreams...

We know everything about her. We know that its full name is "Freedom Enlightening the World", when and who created it, when and where they put up a separate hand with a torch, by what date the entire statue was donated and by whom. We even know that we were 10 years late with her. Without exaggeration, the Statue of Liberty can be called the most famous statue in the world, and our man is no exception here. He knows more about this overseas beauty than about his relatives.

What a huge one - look at the little people at the base of the statue - they are practically invisible, unless you specifically look closely. She stands on broken chains, holding a torch and a tablet with the date July 4, 1776 in her hands. Visitors walk 356 steps to the crown of the Statue of Liberty or 192 steps to the top of the pedestal. There are 25 windows in the crown, which symbolize earthly gems and heavenly rays that illuminate the world. The seven rays on the crown of the statue symbolize the seven seas and seven continents (the western geographical tradition has exactly seven continents). She is not just a symbol of the United States, she is a symbol of the global scale. But, in my opinion, today it is a symbol of the ending world order, and a monument on the grave of freedom, which, in fact, never existed.

But back to the facts. So.

Most of our compatriots do not even think that our statues will be more massive than Western ones. Moreover, after such propaganda pictures that hundreds of people walk around the net, we don’t even have the thought to doubt it.

What a huge statue of Christ the Redeemer hugging. And in the last picture - the Statue of Liberty looks even more statue Kyiv Motherland, which even here is 9 meters higher.

Is that so? In the next photo we will see the actual size of the Statue of Liberty in New York in comparison with the figure in Volgograd and the very hugging statue in Rio, we see that this Christ, if he could hug anyone, would definitely not be our girls. With his size, he could only hug the monuments to Lenin fleeing from Ukraine.

And in the next photo we will see the actual dimensions of the statues without pedestals. Except for the New Wonder of the World - the statue of Christ the Redeemer, which, apparently, had to leave a pedestal so that it would not be the smallest in the photo. After all, even with a pedestal, it is only 38 meters in height. The facial expressions of Vladimir Ilyich in this photo, of course, are hard to see, but it seems to me that he is grinning.

Now someone, of course, will say that our statues still do not reach the huge Buddhist ones. It's hard to argue here, because the numbers speak for themselves. But I, with your permission, allow myself to argue with the level of complexity of the construction of these statues. So, the Motherland Calling sculpture is the ONLY DYNAMIC statue of this size in the WORLD! ! ! I emphasize - the only one!!!

The statue by sculptor Vuchetich and engineer Nikitin is made of 5,500 tons of concrete and 2,400 tons of metal structures. The height of the monument is 86 meters, the height of the sculpture itself is 53 meters. At the same time, the thickness of the walls of the sculpture is no more than 30 centimeters. The sword in the hand of the Motherland weighs 14 tons and has a length of 33 meters. It is said that a car fits freely in the palm of the statue. In 2008, the statue of the Motherland on Mamaev Kurgan was recognized as one of the Seven Wonders of Russia.

In 1972, restorers replaced the sword in the statue's hand with a lighter one made of stainless steel. They also made holes in it to reduce the pressure of the wind. The old sword was made of titanium and rattled in the wind. In the mid-sixties, when the monument was opened, it was the most tall monument on the planet. The Statue of Liberty has never been anything "most", except perhaps the most recognizable in the world.

On the this moment the statue is one of the ten tallest statues in the world. Motherland is threatened with collapse due to groundwater. Experts say that if the slope of the statue increases by another 300 mm, it could collapse due to any, even the most insignificant reason.

A 70-year-old pensioner Valentina Ivanovna Izotova lives in Volgograd, with whom the sculpture "The Motherland Calls" was sculpted 40 years ago. Valentina Ivanovna is a modest person, she worked at that time as a waitress in the Volgograd restaurant. For more than 40 years, she was silent about the fact that, as a model, she posed for sculptors who sculpted perhaps the most famous sculpture in Russia - the Motherland. She was silent, because in Soviet times it was, to put it mildly, indecent to talk about the profession of a model, especially for a married woman raising two daughters. Now Valya Izotova is already a grandmother and willingly talks about that distant episode in her youth, which has now become perhaps the most significant event of her whole life.

I thought for a long time, - recalls Izotova, - the times were strict then, and my husband forbade it. But then the husband relented, and I gave the guys my consent. Who in his youth did not embark on various adventures?

The adventure turned into serious work that lasted two years. Vuchetich himself claimed Valentina's candidacy for the role of the Motherland. He, having listened to the arguments of his colleagues in favor of a simple Volgograd waitress, nodded his head in the affirmative, and it began. Posing turned out to be a very difficult task. Standing for several hours a day with outstretched arms and forward left foot was tiring. According to the plan of the sculptors, a sword was supposed to be in the right hand, but in order not to tire Valentina too much, they put a long stick in her palm. At the same time, she had to give her face an inspired expression calling for feats.

The guys insisted: "Valya, you must call people after you. You are the Motherland!" And I called, for which I was paid 3 rubles per hour. Imagine what it's like to stand with your mouth open for hours.

Was during work and one juicy moment. The sculptors insisted that Valentina, as befits a model, pose naked, but Izotova resisted. Suddenly the husband comes. At first they agreed on a separate swimsuit. True, then the upper part of the swimsuit had to be removed. Breasts should come out as natural. By the way, there was no tunic on the model. It was only later that Vuchetich himself threw a fluttering robe over Rodina. Our heroine saw the finished monument a few days after its official opening. It was interesting to look at myself from the outside: the face, hands, legs - everything is native, only made of stone and 52 meters tall. More than 40 years have passed since then. Valentina Izotova is alive and well and is proud that a monument was erected to her during her lifetime. For a long life.

So, the height of the female figure of the sculpture Motherland Calls! 52 m, the height of the Statue of Liberty is 46 m. ​​And this is before the torch. That is, the figure itself is no more than 40 meters.

And the last. Purpose.

The Statue of Liberty is known throughout the world and many, as I already wrote, dream of seeing it in reality. Seeing, at least, people feel a certain emptiness - that's all? is this the "great statue"? and, at most, feel disappointed. There is no soul there. Perhaps Americans are feeling a rush of patriotism under or in this statue, but our man most certainly does not feel anything of the sort.

And the diametrically opposite can be said about our native statue. She has the opposite effect. The calling Motherland has an amazing property of psychological impact on everyone who sees her. There are so many feelings that no one can ignore them. After the first meeting with the appearance of their homeland, people walk under the impression for a long time. How the author managed to achieve this, one can only guess.

I think it's in our blood. Let's check?

No matter how much you turn on the song Khasbulat Udaloy (US anthem), the impact of the Freedom Monument on a person does not increase.

But, I’ll quietly turn on our patriotic little letters for you, and in your head how Babakhnet is now for everyone who is a real patriot in his spirit !!!

wake up great country

stand up for the death fight. . .

Large and tall statues have been built since ancient times. For example, Great Sphinx, built by the ancient Egyptians was 20 meters in height. However, over the past century, a number of statues have been built, far exceeding the height of the ancient wonders of the world. In this list, I will list the 7 tallest statues in the world at the moment

7. Sculpture Motherland in Kyiv

This is a monument in honor of the Great Patriotic War, calling for patriotism. The creation of the sculpture was completed in 1981, the statue itself rises to 62 meters, and together with the overall structure, the height is 102 meters. The weight of the statue is 560 tons. Interestingly, the Motherland Motherland sculpture in Volgograd, on Mamaev Kurgan, is much more famous, but its height is 54 meters

6. Sculpture of Emperors Yan and Huan

This sculpture was carved into the rock, it took more than two decades. Completed its creation in 2007. the total height of the sculpture is 106 meters. For those who are not in the know, the sculpture is dedicated to the two very first emperors of China - Yan Di and Huan Di

5. Statue of Kuan Yin in China

The statue of Bodhisattva Huan Yin, 108 meters high, is located on south coast Hainan Islands in China. It took 6 years to create the statue, the work was completed in 2005

4. Statue of Cristo Rei (110 meters)

This statue was inspired by the famous Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro in 1959. The construction took 10 years, and the size of the statue is fully consistent with the statue in Rio. the total height of the monument is 110 meters

3. Statue of Ushiku Daibutsu in Japan (120 meters)

The statue of Ushiku Daibutsu is dedicated to the Buddha Amitabha and is located in the city of Ushiku in Japan. It was built in 1995. This is the third highest statue in the world, the total height of the monument is 120 meters. There is an elevator inside the statue, where you can go up to the observation platform at the top of the statue.

2. Laykyun Setkyar in Myanmar (130 meters)

This statue is the second tallest in the world. It is built on Kaung Hill in central Myanmar. At his feet is also the largest reclining Buddha statue in the world. The reclining Buddha was built in 1991 and the tall Laykyun Setkyar in 2008

1. Buddha Spring Temple(153 meters)

This is the largest and tallest statue in the world. The total height of the entire monument is 153 meters. The construction of this sculpture was started after terrorists blew up the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan. The statue was completed in 2008

The graph below clearly demonstrates the size of the Spring Buddha in relation to the Statue of Liberty, the Motherland in Volgograd and Christ the Redeemer

The statue of the Motherland monument, located in Volgograd, is recognized as the highest in Europe and Russia. The element of the compositional center is the second part of the triptych, which includes such elements as: the Magnitogorsk “Rear Front” and the Berlin “Liberator Warrior”.

The overall picture implies a sword made in Ural mountains, raised to defend the fatherland near Stalingrad and lowered after the surrender of the Nazi command in the capital of Germany.

The monument is located on Mamaev Kurgan almost in the center of the city of Volgograd. It is located near the banks of the Volga and river station. The location facing the northeast implies an appeal to the fatherland with a call to stand up to fight against the hated enemy, who is trying to destroy everything in its path.

The hill, which became the location of the monument, according to legend, is the burial place of the temnik of the Golden Horde Mamai. This is confirmed by numerous archaeological finds made even before the war.

Daily fighting continued here from September 1942 to January 1943. In total, about 34,000 soldiers died here. That's why given place and was chosen for the erection of the sculpture.

The author's idea of ​​the monument "Motherland Calls" in Volgograd

The idea to perpetuate the place, which became a turning point during the Second World War, came to the Supreme Commander even before its end. Already at the end of 1944, a competition was announced to determine the appearance of the monument.

It was attended not only by Soviet architects and simple people, variations came from foreign countries: Morocco and China. Options depicting Stalin and a pyramid of melted tanks acting as the base were rejected. As a result, the version of the sculptor Yevgeny Viktorovich Vuchetich was chosen, which has the name "Motherland".

The history of the construction of the monument "Motherland Calls"

The statue "Motherland" in Volgograd, the height of which allowed her to get into the Guinness Book of Records, was built by almost the entire Soviet Union. As an example, we can cite the memoirs of a worker at one of the Ural metallurgical plants" "Having learned that our metal would be used to make the frame of the monument, although this would require working in 2 shifts, we unanimously agreed."

The presented example is not unique. At the stage of pouring the figure, any idle time could cause the concrete to set and form a micro-gap between the layers. To prevent this, the vehicles delivering the material were marked with special tapes, allowing them to pass "on the red" light of a traffic light.

The erection of the monument began in the summer of 1959. It lasted 8 years and ended in the fall of 1967. For this, a large number of building material, as a result of which the walls of the pedestal are 0.3 m thick. The foundation, completely dug into the ground at the base, is deepened by 15 m. For this, a foundation pit was dug more than 8 m.

Total spent:

1. Concrete - 5500 tons.
2. Metal structures and fittings - 2,500 tons.

The main persons in charge of the construction were the sculptor E. V. Vuchetich and the engineer N. V. Nikitin, under whose guidance many other specialists involved in various fields worked.

For example:

1. Musical accompaniment and scoring of each sculptural composition ensemble on Mamaev Kurgan - announcer A. I. Levitan, sound engineer A. I. Geraskin, director V. K. Magatoev.
2. Marshal of the USSR, who was directly involved in the defense of Stalingrad, was V. I. Chuikov, a military consultant.

The prototype of the statue

The Motherland statue in Volgograd, whose height was an absolute record of that time, partially resembles the face of the sculptor's wife.

There is an opinion that the author was inspired by other people and ancient figures:

1. Girls who posed for him, but did not suspect for what purpose: A. A. Peshkova; V. Izotova; E. Grebneva.
2. Sportswoman Nina Dumbadze, a disco wrestler, with whom he sculpted a figure.
3. The figure of the Marseillaise painted on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
4. Antique statue of Nike of Samothrace.

Whose image Yevgeny Viktorovich actually took as a prototype, no one will know. The author died at the age of 65, 7 years after the discovery of his sculpture.

Elimination of design flaws

Concerns about the stability of the structure appeared at the construction stage. 2 years before graduation, the inspection commission from the State Construction Committee recommended to the management to strengthen the soil for fear of "sliding" to the river bank. As a result, major additional reinforcement and concreting was carried out on the very base of the statue.

A year after the opening, another problem appeared. The sword of the statue, made of stainless steel and sheathed with titanium sheets, was made with errors in the calculations. The wide canvas caused excessive tension, resulting in rocking. During the winter, the metal deformed and began to make a sharp creaking sound.

The decision was made only in 1972.

The sword was replaced by a new one, cast at the local metallurgical plant "Red October". Now it was made of steel. The windage has been reduced by adding holes in the top. Another survey in 1986 revealed a number of deviations from the specified parameters. According to the recommendations received, work was carried out to strengthen the skeleton and facade.

A key mistake during the construction was made through no fault of the architect and workers. "Motherland" was built in a difficult time for the country. Many cities have not yet been rebuilt from ruins, so all funds were directed to construction, and not to the development of new innovative technologies to improve the quality of concrete.

The result was periodic weathering and small cracking of the structure under ultraviolet light and strong steppe winds. Therefore, every year it undergoes minor decorative repairs.

Specifications of the monument

The basis for the statue is a 2-meter pedestal, based on a solid foundation. The hill on which it is located was formed artificially. Initially, the hill was on the spot where the church stands.

The soil for the embankment was transported by trucks for 1 month. According to tentative data, more than 150 tons of land were delivered in total. The weight of the resulting structure of the statue is 8,000 tons of reinforced concrete.

The inner cavity is hollow, there are 119 metal cables, each of which is designed to hold a load of 60 tons. The purpose of the tension is to hold and stiffen the entire structure. Pretension control is carried out using sensors located at the ends of the stretch marks. Some of them are not intact, but are joined on intermediate floors, reinforcing the concrete structure.

The most complex structure is located at the chest level of the monument. The mentioned steel cables distribute the loads of the structure, pulling together the stress of the weight of the arms of the monument. It should be noted that the "Motherland" has no adhesion to the foundation, thus, it is held like a chess piece, under its own weight.

Contrary to numerous speculations about an elevator that once existed and a restaurant for VIPs and an observation deck located in the head and sword, there is nothing of the kind here. The upper part can only be reached by a 52 m high staircase with 203 steps. Most of the rooms are small rooms with an area of ​​​​3 * 3 m.

However, in the area of ​​the head and chest there are 2 large rooms, in which there is equipment that takes into account the vibration of the structure. You can only get into the head by a metal ladder installed vertically. To do this, you will have to overcome a shaft with a diameter of not more than 1.5 m. The room has an exit designed for industrial climbers. There are 2 more in the hilt of the sword.

Interesting facts about the monument "Motherland Calls"

At the time of design, Vuchetich changed the concept of the project after it was approved. Initially, he proposed a variant of two compositions: a warrior kneels in front of a woman, holding out a sword to her.

The ideological considerations of Yevgeny Viktorovich were based on the fact that a soldier cannot give up his weapon, since the war is not yet over. This is not the only deviation from the planned project.

Gradually, a number of changes were made that few people know about:

Excursions to Mamaev Kurgan. Prices

Mamaev Kurgan is a place where the bitterness of losses and the joy of victory in the Great Patriotic War are still felt. You can get acquainted with the main sights, expositions of the memorial complex on your own or using the services of guides.

The review begins and ends in one place: at the foot in front of a staircase consisting of 200 steps, similar to the number of days that the Battle of Stalingrad continued. As an approximate acquaintance, the table below provides information on the cost of excursion services of the Stalingrad Battle Museum-Reserve (Mamaev Kurgan).

The cost of providing services is given in accordance with the order of the Museum-Reserve "Battle of Stalingrad" dated February 22, 2018.

Statue Destruction Chance

The statue "Motherland" in Volgograd, whose height reaches 85 m, is able to stand for a long time. Despite the numerous design errors discussed earlier, there is no likelihood of failure. With proper maintenance and control, one of the unique monuments recognized as a miracle of Russia will remain intact for many years.

Starting in 1966, the statue began to deviate from its original position. However, the calculated information shows that there is nothing critical in this, exceeding the permissible standards. For example, between 2000 and 2008 it has moved 16 mm. The design features of the project assume and allow a deviation from the vertical axis by 272 mm.

One of the most unique buildings in Russia has been haunted by various legends and stories throughout its history. If some of them are real, then a number of others are just fiction.

If we talk about facts from the present past, we can distinguish the following:

Among the fairy tales, the most common are 2:

1. The story of the elevator, restaurant and observation deck, functioning many years ago, about which was mentioned earlier.
2. The myth that after the monument was opened inside it, one of the members of the selection committee was lost. Despite the huge number of small rooms, getting lost in them is problematic.

Comparison of the statue with other large monuments in the world

The statue "Motherland" in Volgograd, the height of which allows it to enter the 10 highest monuments depicting a human figure in full growth. If we talk about Russian sculptures, only the monument to Peter I, located on the Moscow River, exceeds it.

However, if we take into account that the Volgograd exhibit is over 50 years old, and the Moscow exhibit is only 21 years old, and if we imagine the difference in the technological progress of these times, preference is given to the first. The height of a person is only 18 m, and 98 m is achieved taking into account the ensemble of the ship's masts.

Statue of Liberty in New York

"Statue of Liberty" in English means "Illuminating the world of freedom." It is located not far from New York Manhattan, on an island in the middle of the bay. The monument was built at the end of the 19th century as a reminder of the centenary of the independence of the United States. Remarkably, the construction of the statue was carried out not by the Americans, but by the French, and the element itself was presented as a gift.

The monument represents a woman dressed in a tunic that covers her entire body, except for her head, hands and feet. With bare feet, she stands on broken chains, representing independence. On the head is a 7-pointed crown, in the right raised hand - a lit torch, in the left - a tablet, reminiscent of the date of the Declaration of Independence.

Unlike the Volgograd monument, thin copper sheets were used for the construction, which were minted in wooden molds and mounted on a steel base.

Acquainted with technical specifications Statues of Liberty can be in the table below:

Statue of Christ in Rio de Janeiro

The Brazilian statue is classified as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. Its height is 38 m, but due to the fact that it is located at the highest point, from time to time it becomes the so-called lightning rod. Approximately 4 - 5 times a year lightning strikes it.

The date of foundation of the monument is equal to the centenary of the independence of Brazil.

Work on it began in 1922, after 9 years the construction was completed. The uniqueness of the work performed lies in the fact that for a number of reasons it was not possible to perform them on the spot. As a result, the production of the frame took place in France. For this, reinforced concrete and soapstone were used.

You can get acquainted with the general technical characteristics of the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro in the table:

Buddha statue in Japan

In Japanese, she is called Ushiku Daibutsu, which means Big Buddha, it is located in the city of Usik. It is the third largest statue in the world and the largest made of bronze. It rises above the ground to a height of 120 m, of which the size of the platform is only 20 m.

With her appearance, she shows that she is transmitting the teachings to followers who are heading along the right path of enlightenment. The right hand is in a raised state, the left is lowered along the body. The palms are turned towards the observers. The index and thumb of each of them are connected at the tips, the rest are straight.

The technical characteristics of the monument are given in the table:

Motherland in Ukraine

The monument was opened in 1981. It was the first steel monument of this size built on the territory Soviet Union. The work on the appearance of the statue was carried out by E. V. Vuchetich, who created the “Motherland” on Mamaev Kurgan. The sudden death of the sculptor did not stop the work. His work was continued by Vasily Borodai and a number of other specialists who worked under Evgeny Viktorovich.

The statue on the banks of the Dnieper is depicted as a woman holding a sword in one hand and a shield in the other, symbolizing the defense of the Fatherland. The structure is hollow, inside it there are 2 elevators designed for the movement of maintenance and repair personnel. In the early 2000s, sightseers were allowed to climb to the top of the statue, where an observation deck was equipped.

However, in 2003, a visitor fell, as a result of which entry was restricted. Regular inspections of the technical condition suggest that the Motherland monument has a safety margin of more than 150 years.

You can get acquainted with the technical characteristics of the statue in the table:

The Motherland statue emphasizes the high morale of the Russian people, the creator of the great historical event that broke the course of the Great Patriotic War. The battles for Volgograd (Stalingrad) revealed the unrequited love of a soldier for his homeland, regardless of nationality and civil status.

Article formatting: Lozinsky Oleg

Video about Motherland Mother statue

The history of the creation of the Motherland Mother statue in Volgograd:

Sculpture "Motherland is calling!" - the compositional center of the monument-ensemble "To the Heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad" on Mamaev Kurgan in Volgograd. One of the tallest statues in the world.

A huge hill rises above the Square of Sorrow, which is crowned by the main monument - the Motherland. This is a mound about 14 meters high, in which the remains of 34,505 soldiers - the defenders of Stalingrad - are buried. A serpentine path leads to the top of the hill to the Motherland, along which there are 35 granite tombstones of the Heroes of the Soviet Union, participants in the Battle of Stalingrad. From the foot of the mound to its top, the serpentine consists of exactly 200 granite steps 15 cm high and 35 cm wide - according to the number of days of the Battle of Stalingrad.

Mamaev Kurgan in the winter of 1945. In the foreground is a broken German cannon RaK 40.

The end point of the path is a monument "Motherland is calling!", the compositional center of the ensemble, highest point barrow. Its dimensions are huge - the height of the figure is 52 meters, and the total height of the Motherland - 85 meters(along with the sword). For comparison, the height of the famous Statue of Liberty without a pedestal is only 45 meters. At the time of construction, Motherland was the tallest statue in the country and in the world. Later, the Kyiv Motherland, 102 meters high, appeared. Today, the tallest statue in the world is the 120-meter Buddha statue, built in 1995 and located in Japan, in the city of Chuchura. The total weight of the Motherland is 8 thousand tons. In her right hand she holds a steel sword, which is 33 meters long and weighs 14 tons. Compared to the height of a person, the sculpture is enlarged 30 times. The thickness of the reinforced concrete walls of the Motherland is only 25-30 centimeters. It was cast layer by layer using a special formwork made of gypsum materials. Inside, the rigidity of the frame is maintained by a system of more than a hundred cables. The monument is not fastened to the foundation, it is held by gravity. Motherland stands on a slab only 2 meters high, which rests on the main foundation 16 meters high, but it is almost invisible - most of it is hidden underground. To enhance the effect of the location of the monument at the highest point of the mound, an artificial embankment 14 meters high was made.

Stalingrad, Mamaev Kurgan. In the foreground, the Renault UE Chenillette is a light French armored personnel carrier that was in service with the Wehrmacht.

As soon as the cannonade died down in Stalingrad, the grateful country began to think about what a monument to the creators of this great victory should be like. Drawings and sketches were sent not only by professionals, but also by people of completely different professions. Some sent them to the Academy of Arts, others to the State Defense Committee, someone personally to Comrade Stalin. Moreover, everyone saw the future monument as grandiose, unprecedented in size, to match the significance of the victory itself.

The all-Union competition was announced immediately after the war. All prominent Soviet architects and architects participated. The results were summed up ten years later. Although few doubted that the Stalin Prize winner Yevgeny Vuchetich would win. By that time, he had already created a memorial in Treptow Park in Berlin and enjoyed the trust of the first persons of the state. On January 23, 1958, the Council of Ministers of the USSR decided to start the construction of a monument-ensemble on Mamaev Kurgan. In May 1959, construction began to boil.

In his work, Vuchetich turned to the theme of the sword three times - the Motherland-Mother raises the sword on Mamaev Kurgan, calling for the expulsion of the conquerors; sword cuts the fascist swastika Warrior-winner in Berlin's Treptow Park; the sword is forged for a plow by a worker in the composition “Let's Forge Swords into Plowshares”, expressing the desire of people good will to fight for disarmament in the name of the triumph of peace on the planet. This sculpture was donated by Vuchetech to the United Nations and was installed in front of the headquarters in New York, and a copy of it - to the Volgograd gas equipment plant, in the shops of which the Motherland was born). This sword was born in Magnitogorsk (during the war years, every third shell and every second tank was made of Magnitogorsk metal), where the monument to the Rear Front was erected.

During the construction of the monument motherland many changes were made to the already finished project. Few people know that initially, at the top of Mamayev Kurgan, a sculpture of the Motherland with a red banner and a kneeling fighter was supposed to stand on a pedestal (according to some versions, Ernst Neizvestny was the author of this project). According to the original plan, two monumental staircases led to the monument. But later Vuchetich changed the main idea of ​​the monument. After the Battle of Stalingrad, the country had more than 2 years of bloody battles ahead of it, and the Victory was still far away. Vuchetich left the Motherland alone, now she called her sons to begin the victorious expulsion of the enemy.

He also removed the pompous pedestal of the Motherland, which practically repeated the one on which his victorious Soldier stands in Treptow Park. Instead of monumental stairs (which, by the way, had already been built), a serpentine path appeared near the Motherland. The Motherland itself "grew up" relative to its original size - its height reached 36 meters. But this option did not become final. Soon after the completion of work on the foundation of the main monument, Vuchetich (on the instructions of Khrushchev) increases the size of the Motherland to 52 meters. Because of this, the builders had to urgently “load” the foundation, for which 150 thousand tons of earth were laid in the embankment.

In the Timiryazevsky district of Moscow, at the dacha of Vuchetich, where his workshop was located and today - the house-museum of the architect - you can see working sketches: a reduced model of the Motherland, as well as a full-size model of the head of the statue.

In a sharp, impetuous impulse, a woman stood up on the mound. With a sword in her hands, she calls on her sons to stand up for the Fatherland. Her right leg is slightly laid back, her torso and head are vigorously turned to the left. The face is stern and strong-willed. Shifted eyebrows, a wide-open, screaming mouth, short hair swollen with gusts of wind, strong arms, a long dress fitting the shape of the body, the ends of a scarf inflated by gusts of wind - all this creates a feeling of strength, expression and an irresistible desire to move forward. Against the background of the sky, it is like a bird soaring in the sky.

The sculpture of the Motherland looks great from all sides at any time of the year: in the summer, when the mound is covered with a solid grass carpet, and in the winter evening - bright, illuminated by the beams of spotlights. The majestic statue, speaking against the background of a dark blue sky, seems to grow out of the mound, merging with its snow cover.

The work of the sculptor E. V. Vuchetich and the engineer N. V. Nikitin is a multi-meter figure of a woman stepping forward with a raised sword. The statue is an allegorical image of the Motherland, calling its sons to fight the enemy. In the artistic sense, the statue is a modern interpretation of the image of the ancient goddess of victory, Nike, who calls on her sons and daughters to repel the enemy and continue the offensive.

The construction of the monument began in May 1959 and was completed on October 15, 1967. The sculpture at the time of creation was the tallest sculpture in the world. Restoration work on the Main Monument of the monument-ensemble was carried out twice: in 1972 and 1986, in particular, in 1972 the sword was replaced.

The prototype of the sculpture was Valentina Izotova (according to other sources, Peshkova Anastasia Antonovna, a graduate of the Barnaul Pedagogical School in 1953).

Valentina Izotova, 68, modeled for Russia's famous Motherland memorial. For almost 40 years, she did not say that she participated in its creation.

Could I refuse when the sculptors asked me to pose for a statue in memory of the huge losses suffered by the Red Army in Stalingrad? But I was horrified when they said that I should pose naked.

It was the early 1960s, and decent women would not undress in front of anyone but their husbands. Artists, even such respected and famous ones as Lev Maistrenko, who worked on the memorial, meant nothing to a 26-year-old woman.

It was Leo who contacted me. I worked as a waitress in the city's main restaurant "Volgograd" - it is still there - and usually served the hall reserved for high-ranking party functionaries and delegations. Leo said that I was beautiful and embody all the physical and moral qualities of an ideal Soviet woman. Of course, I was flattered, how else?

Curiosity got the better of me and I agreed to pose. None of us had any idea how famous Motherland would become. Volgograd (former Stalingrad) is known for this sculpture as well as for the battle that took place here.

My husband did not like that I would pose for a group of artists sent from Moscow. He was terribly jealous and took me to every session at the studio they set up in the old gas apparatus factory.

After a while, it became the same job as any other, I hardly thought about standing in a bathing suit, and I was glad that I was paid three rubles a day, because then it was a decent amount. But only six months later, I finally succumbed to the persuasion of the sculptors to take off my bra and expose my chest. But that was it. I was unshakable in my determination to keep my modesty and not to pose completely naked. It was unthinkable.

No one except relatives and closest friends knew about it. Shortly after the sessions were over, I went to get my first higher education: I have two diplomas - an economist and an engineer. Then I left Volgograd and began to live and work in Norilsk.

After the opening of the memorial in 1967, I thought little about it and lived my life.

In October 2010, work began to secure the statue.

The sculpture is made from blocks of prestressed reinforced concrete - 5,500 tons of concrete and 2,400 tons of metal structures (without the base on which it stands).

The total height of the monument is 85-87 meters. It is installed on a concrete foundation 16 meters deep. The height of the female figure is 52 meters (weight - over 8 thousand tons).

The statue stands on a slab only 2 meters high, which rests on the main foundation. This foundation is 16 meters high, but it is almost invisible - most of it is hidden underground. The statue stands freely on the slab, like a chess piece on a board.

The thickness of the reinforced concrete walls of the sculpture is only 25-30 centimeters. Inside, the entire statue is made up of individual cell cells, like rooms in a building. The rigidity of the frame is supported by ninety-nine metal cables that are constantly in tension.

The sword, 33 meters long and weighing 14 tons, was originally made of stainless steel sheathed with titanium sheets. The huge mass and high windage of the sword, due to its colossal size, caused a strong swaying of the sword when exposed to wind loads, which led to excessive mechanical stress at the point of attachment of the hand holding the sword to the body of the sculpture. Deformations in the sword's structure also caused the sheets of titanium plating to move, creating an unpleasant sound of rattling metal. Therefore, in 1972, the blade was replaced with another one - entirely consisting of fluorinated steel - and holes were provided in the upper part of the sword, which made it possible to reduce its windage. The reinforced concrete structure of the sculpture was strengthened in 1986 on the recommendation of the NIIZhB expert group led by R.L. Serykh.

There are very few similar sculptures in the world, for example, the statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, the "Motherland" in Kyiv, the monument to Peter I in Moscow. For comparison, the height of the Statue of Liberty from the pedestal is 46 meters.

The most complex calculations of the stability of this structure were made by N. V. Nikitin, Doctor of Technical Sciences, the author of the calculation of the stability of the Ostankino television tower. At night, the statue is illuminated by spotlights.

“The horizontal displacement of the upper part of the 85-meter monument is currently 211 millimeters, or 75% of the allowable calculations. Deviations have been going on since 1966. If from 1966 to 1970 the deviation was 102 millimeters, then from 1970 to 1986 - 60 millimeters, until 1999 - 33 millimeters, from 2000-2008 - 16 millimeters, "said the director of the State Historical and Memorial Museum-Reserve" Battle of Stalingrad "" Alexander Velichkin.

Interesting Facts

• The sculpture "Motherland" is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest sculpture-statue in the world at that time. Its height is 52 meters, the length of the arm is 20 and the sword is 33 meters. The total height of the sculpture is 85 meters. The weight of the sculpture is 8 thousand tons, and the sword is 14 tons (for comparison: the Statue of Liberty in New York is 46 meters high; the Statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro is 38 meters). At the moment, the statue takes 11th place in the list of the tallest statues in the world.
• Vuchetich told Andrei Sakharov: “The authorities ask me why her mouth is open, because it’s ugly. I answer: And she screams - for the Motherland ... your mother! - shut up.
• There is a legend according to which, shortly after creation, a man was lost in the sculpture; no one saw him after that. But that's just a legend
• The silhouette of the sculpture "Motherland" was taken as the basis for the development of the emblem and flag of the Volgograd region

In the course of construction, Vuchetich made changes to the project more than once. little known fact: at first, the main monument of the ensemble had to look completely different. At the top of the mound, the author wanted to put a sculpture of the "Motherland" with a red banner and a kneeling fighter. According to the original plan, two monumental staircases led to it. They were built when Vuchetich went to Khrushchev, the then leader of the country, and convinced him that it would be better if people began to climb the serpentine path to the top.

But these are far from all the changes that the master made to the already finished project. Valentina Klyushina, who for many years was the deputy director of the memorial, told me how it all happened. During the years of the creation of the complex, she worked in the Volgograd City Executive Committee and oversaw the construction.

- "Motherland" Vuchetich decided to leave one. He also removed the pompous pedestal, practically repeating the one on which stands his Victorious Soldier in Treptow Park. The main figure has become taller - 36 meters. But this option did not last long. As soon as the builders had time to make the foundation, the author increased the size of the sculpture. Up to 52 meters! In the competition of superpowers, it was necessary that the main monument of the USSR was higher than the American Statue of Liberty. I had to urgently “load” the foundation so that it could withstand an 85-meter (together with a sword) sculpture weighing 8,000 tons. 150 thousand tons of earth were then laid in the embankment. And since the deadlines were running out, a military battalion was allocated to help the brigades.

The discrepancy came out with the current Hall of Military Glory. It was supposed to install a panorama canvas there. As soon as the "box" of the building was built, Vuchetich decides that the panorama should be placed separately. Which they then did. And in the finished building along the perimeter of the walls there are mosaic banners with the names of the fallen defenders of the city. The author also quickly passed this question through the Central Committee of the CPSU.

With these same banners, too, there was embarrassment. Here is what Klyushina said:

Masters from Leningrad worked with mosaics. Artistic glass was supplied from the Ukrainian city of Lisichansk. Mosaic workers laid out the interior as material arrived. When everything was ready and the scaffolding was removed, everyone gasped. The tones on the wall were so different that it looked like a chessboard. The deadline for the project was approaching. And Vuchetich had no choice but to call "upstairs." This time to Brezhnev. He immediately dialed the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine, Shelest, and explained the task to him. In a word, a few days later the cars delivered new glass to Volgograd.

Now imagine: it's June, four months are left before the opening of the memorial. And we need to restore the scaffolding again, prepare and lay more than a thousand square meters of multi-colored glass pieces. The legendary commander of the 62nd Army, Vasily Chuikov, was very helpful here. By the way, he was Vuchetich's chief consultant for the project. 500 soldiers were seconded to the construction headquarters. The fighters worked in Stakhanov style. Three weeks later, the interior of the hall took on its intended form.

But these are not all the difficulties faced by the creators of the complex. On one of the spring days of the same 1967, a critical situation arose with a 33-meter sword.

…Normally, Chief Engineer"Volgogradgidrostroy" Yuri Abramov went to work at the headquarters in the morning. On the way, he came across a flock of boys arguing ... why is the sword swinging so strongly in the hand of the “Motherland”? Abramov raised his head and was horrified. They immediately carried out an operational operation, and the very next day a special commission arrived from Moscow. It soon became clear that the designers did not take into account the data of long-term observations of the wind rose. So it turned out that the sword was turned flat in relation to the wind. I urgently had to make several holes in it so that it could be blown freely. In addition, the commission generally recommended replacing the heavy titanium sword with a lighter steel one.

At the very end of the construction, 50 powerful spotlights were required to illuminate the sculpture. They couldn't get them anywhere. The country at that time was preparing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution - and everything that was produced went to Moscow and Leningrad according to the orders. Klyushina was sent to the capital to the chairman of the Moscow City Executive Committee Promyslov. He said that Moscow could not help. And advised to go to the manufacturer. And Klyushina rushed to the city of Gusev, which in Kaliningrad region. The director of Elektromash also only shrugged at the request. Then he thought about it and suggested that Valentina speak on the factory radio to the workers and ask them to work in excess of the norm. They organized two additional shifts and the Saira searchlights went to Volgograd. On October 15, 1967, the monument-ensemble was inaugurated.

Construction continued for eight years and five months. The memorial stands for another forty years. He always looked decent. Even when everything in the country collapsed and fell into disrepair, the grass was neatly cut on the mound. But only the people working here know what this order is worth. And how you have to beat out money from the authorities of all ranks in order to patch and repair a huge unique economy.

Someone inadvertently said that, they say, the "Motherland" was tilted so much that it could soon fall. This is nonsense. “Any structure of this type,” says the director of the memorial, retired general Vladimir Berlov, “can lean. This is even provided by the designers. Say, the design of our monument is designed for a deviation of 272 millimeters. The figure, - continues Berlov, - is constantly examined for the formation of cracks, roughness, its position is analyzed. And the analysis of concrete chips, carried out in a German laboratory, showed the excellent condition of the structure and the presence of the necessary margin of safety. From the inside, it is supported by 99 tension ropes. Believe me, says the director, this system will never allow the monument to tilt to a critical level.

You can take a walk with Sergei Doli inside the monument

And here is a walk with Artemy Lebedev

At the end of June 1941, perhaps the main graphic work of the Great Patriotic War, which later became part of all history textbooks, was released - Irakli Toidze's poster “The Motherland Calls”. By the artist's own admission, the idea of ​​creating a collective image of a mother calling for help from her sons came to his mind quite by accident. Hearing the first message from the Soviet Information Bureau about the attack of fascist Germany on the USSR, Toidze's wife ran into his studio shouting "War!" Struck by the expression on her face, the artist ordered his wife to freeze and immediately began to sketch the future masterpiece. In the future, the very concept of "Motherland" became almost the cornerstone of all Soviet propaganda, embodied in countless imitations and migrated to related areas of fine art, including monumental art.

The original article is on the website InfoGlaz.rf Link to the article from which this copy is made -

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