Monument to the Victims of the Battle of Stalingrad

On the outskirts of the village of Peschanka, Russia, the site of heavy fighting in 1942-1943, an unusual structure rises above the ground: a monument to all the victims of the Battle of Stalingrad. At first glance it is a strange structure, not easy to recognise as a monument. But up close the signs of a memorial appear: a gravestone with a cross, flowers, wreaths. The sharp outline of rusted steel sheets resembles a shell fragment left over from the war, as if rising back out of the ground. Local residents call this unusual monument "the thorn".

The monument to all victims of the Battle of Stalingrad was unveiled on 8 June 1996, funded by Austrian citizens. The public organisations Austrian Black Cross and the Committee for 50 Years of Stalingrad raised the money in 1992-1993.

Designed by the Austrian architect Johann Boyle, the monument looks deliberately simple and rough. A sharp, 10-metre "thorn" of plain steel, left to rust, symbolises the weapons and materials of war in all their cruelty. This form leans toward a gravestone bearing a Catholic cross.

A granite slab beside it carries an inscription in German and Russian: "This monument is dedicated to all the victims of the Battle of Stalingrad of 1942-43. It recalls the suffering of the soldiers and civilians who fell here. For those who fell here and those who died in captivity, from all countries, we pray for eternal rest in Russian soil."

Though the monument is often associated with the Austrians who died in the war, it honours all victims, regardless of nationality or which side they fought on.

The village of Peschanka itself remains a place of memory of the past: trenches, artillery emplacements and other remnants of wartime structures are still visible in the area, and mass graves of Soviet soldiers lie close to the monument. In 1942 Peschanka witnessed heavy fighting, and today this symbol of lasting remembrance stands in its vicinity.