Poklonnaya Gora

September, 2002

I’d never been to Poklonnaya Gora, it just turned out that way. I’d seen it from all sides, driven past it, and seen pictures of it, but I’d never had a chance to actually go there. So when I had half an hour to spare on my way to see the “Park Pobedy” metro station being built, I immediately decided to make up for lost time and go. It was 9 a.m.

* * *

Tonnes of symbols
I’ve always been irritated by the fountains along the main alley of the memorial complex. At night they’re lit up in red. The designers intended for this to symbolize blood. Fountains of blood — it’s all a bit much. I can just imagine what sort of people the children who live nearby will grow up to be after seeing fountains of blood disappearing behind the horizon as they fall asleep every night.

The morning light casts a soft glow. The monument is 141.8 metres high, which symbolises the duration of the war: 1418 days. No explanation is given as to why each day is measured in decimetres, not centimetres. From afar I’d always thought of this stele as a monument to entomologists, hence the cockroach skewered on a safety pin.

On closer inspection using a camera lens, I noticed that Nike’s index finger is stretched out for some reason. Antennae, their purpose a mystery, stick out in all directions.

The sculptural composition is affixed at a height of 120 metres. No explanation is given as to why victory fireworks have already been set off on the surrounding bas-reliefs. The fireworks are supposed to happen 21.8 metres higher. Although I must admit I don’t know shit about monumentalist symbolism. There’s a red object of some sort behind the twenty-five-tonne woman. It’s a 10- tonne dynamic vibration absorber.

As far as I can tell, at the outset the memorial, entitled “the ‘Bayonet’ stele”, was supposed to be a simple bayonet. That’s the only plausible explanation as to why Nike, the goddess of victory, is sitting atop a bayonet. There’s a visitor information board in the alley, which reveals both the architects’ plans and the greed of those who implemented them. The board is basically a photo of the original scale model, which has neither Nike, nor Saint George the Victor on it. They were too tight-fisted to make an updated model.

The stele is lit up with German “Siemens” floodlights to underscore the monumentalist symbolism at play:

Saint George the Victor has expertly sliced lots of cervelas with his spear and now balances on one of the slices:

Wreaths are laid right next to the head of the serpent, which is poking out its tongue.

Why one Soviet soldier is killing another Soviet soldier remains a mystery. I presume that the soldier being killed, the one who has an assault rifle pointed to just below his ribs, is actually a Nazi. This is evidenced by the 20-kilo swastika above his left shoulder and his weird tie. However, there’s also an Orthodox church next to his right arm. Scary symbolism.

The direction signage at the memorial complex on Poklonnaya Gora is really something. Moscovites and visitors to the capital alike will get their bearings in no time.

The last word in road surface markings: an official alley for those who want to be publicly united in wedlock in an area specifically set aside for that purpose.