Dedication of The Motherland Calls

Date: October 15, 1967 • Location: Krasnoslobodsk, Russian Federation

The Motherland Calls (depicted in coat of arms), a colossal statue in Volgograd, Russia, which commemorates the casualties of the Battle of Stalingrad, was dedicated, becoming the then-tallest statue in the world.

The Motherland Calls is a colossal neoclassicist and socialist realist war memorial sculpture on Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, Russia. Designed primarily by sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich with assistance from architect Yakov Belopolsky, the concrete sculpture commemorates the casualties of the Battle of Stalingrad, and is the predominant component of a monument complex, which includes several plazas and other sculptural works. Standing 85 metres (279 ft) tall from the base of its pedestal to its peak, the statue was the tallest in the world upon its completion in 1967, and is the tallest statue in Europe if including the pedestal. The statue, along with the rest of the complex, was dedicated on 15 October 1967, and has been listed as a tentative candidate for UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites since 2014.