The colossal Mother Ukraine — locally Mati Bat'kivshchyna — towers above the right bank of the Dnieper, sword and shield raised. At 102 metres including its base, it is one of the tallest statues in Europe, designed by sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich and engineered to withstand both winds and the heavy weight of its own steel skin.
Lifts inside the monument run to two viewing platforms — one at the foot of the figure and a higher one at her shield — for a vertiginous look out over Kyiv and the Dnieper. The grounds and the war museum at the base are visited together.