The Memorial of Adshimushkay, near Kerch, Ukraine

December 1969 Issue

The Memorial of Adshimushkay, near Kerch, Ukraine

Tragedy told in mute stone. . . Beneath these carved limestone cliffs in Adzhimushkay, near Kerch, Ukraine, a series of natural catacombs was expanded by miners, starting in 1830, until a complex underground network was created.

In May 1942, after the Wehrmacht defeated the Red Army, which was defending the Kerch Peninsula and Sevastopol, remnants of the Soviet forces along with thousands of civilians fled to the catacombs, where they were besieged by the Germans. Although they had few supplies, the Soviets held out for 170 days until driven out by poison gas and explosives. Only 48 of the original 13,000 defenders survived the siege.

Today this sculpture, the Memorial of Adshimushkay, and a museum mark the site.

One reader sent in the correct answer by the deadline, PAUL E. WICKLUND of Wayzata, Minnesota. We thank Jill and Bob Sullivan of Waynesboro, Virginia, for sending in the picture.