How many steps to the top of The Motherland Calls (Mamayev Kurgan)?
There are exactly 200 steps up the memorial approach, one for each day of the Battle of Stalingrad — one of the very few step counts anywhere that is deliberate rather than structural. The statue is 85 m to the sword tip and was the tallest in the world when completed in 1967. It is unanchored, standing on its own weight on a concrete foundation, and its lean has been monitored for decades. The complex sits on Mamayev Kurgan, the hill fought over for most of the battle.
The numbers
- Steps
- 200
- Reaches
- the base of the statue, from the foot of the memorial complex
- Public access
- Open to climb
- Where
- Volgograd, Russia
- Height climbed
- 70 m — 230 ft
- Average rise per step
- 350 mm
What the climb is like
A steady 15-minute walk up a broad ceremonial stairway; no difficulty beyond the length.
Published counts for the same structure routinely disagree by five to ten per cent, and nearly always for one of three reasons: whether intermediate landings count as steps, whether the final platform step counts, and where the climb is deemed to start. The figure here says what it reaches.
How it compares
Only the ones marked open to climb can actually be walked.
| Structure | Steps | Reaches | Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milan Cathedral rooftop | 251 | the roof terraces, at 70 m among the spires | Open to climb |
| Christ the Redeemer | 220 | the statue's viewing platform, from the upper station of the Corcovado railway | Open to climb |
| Statue of Liberty (pedestal) | 215 | the top of the pedestal, at 47 m — the observation level below the statue itself | Open to climb |
| The Motherland Calls (Mamayev Kurgan) | 200 | the base of the statue, from the foot of the memorial complex | Open to climb |
| Wembley Stadium (Royal Box) | 107 | the Royal Box, where trophies are presented | Restricted — events or permit only |
| Lincoln Memorial | 57 | the statue chamber, from the plaza at the Reflecting Pool | Open to climb |
| La Giralda, Seville Cathedral | 17 | the bell chamber at 70 m — the rest of the ascent is 35 ramps, not stairs | Open to climb |
Common questions
- How many steps to the top of The Motherland Calls (Mamayev Kurgan)?
- 200, reaching the base of the statue, from the foot of the memorial complex.
- Can the public climb The Motherland Calls (Mamayev Kurgan)?
- Open to climb. A steady 15-minute walk up a broad ceremonial stairway; no difficulty beyond the length.
- How high is that climb?
- 70 m, about 230 ft, which averages 350 mm per step.
Related pages
- Monuments All 12 here
- How many steps up Statue of Liberty (pedestal)? 215 steps · open to climb
- How many steps up Statue of Liberty (crown)? 377 steps · restricted — events or permit only
- How many steps up Washington Monument? 897 steps · not climbable by the public
- How many steps up Arc de Triomphe? 284 steps · open to climb
- How many steps up Lincoln Memorial? 57 steps · open to climb
- How many steps up Christ the Redeemer? 220 steps · open to climb
- How many steps up The Monument to the Great Fire of London? 311 steps · open to climb
- How many steps up Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey? 350 steps · open to climb
Sources
- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)