On one of the highest places in Donetsk region (near the city of Shakhtersk) is a mound called Saur-Grave. The height of the mound above sea level is 277.9 meters.
This mound is nothing but the remains of one of the spurs of the Donetsk ridge, which over time was blurred. It consists of a mound of sandstone, but sometimes there are also rhinestones of rock crystal.
It is believed that in the second millennium BC, in the Bronze Age, tribes of log culture was poured the top of the mound. Now the upper embankment has a height of four meters and a diameter of 32 meters.
Presumably its name Saur, the mound received from the Turkic word "saur", which literally translated as "steppe height with a rounded top in the form of horse groats. According to folk legends, it is the name of the man Saur, who was either a Cossack or a folk avenger.
Kurgan Saur-Grave is a part of the regional landscape park "Donetsk Kryazh".
During the Great Patriotic War, there were fierce battles for tactically important heights. The German command installed many defensive structures, dugouts and zots, which were located in several tiers. When taking this height, 23,238 Soviet soldiers and officers were killed.
After the war, the place was transformed into the Saur-Grave memorial complex in memory of the dead soldiers. Every year on May 9, war veterans and everyone who wants to honor the memory of people who sacrificed their lives for victory gather here.
On the lower observation deck of the Saur-Grave complex there are samples of military equipment from the Great Patriotic War. And at the very top of the mound is a 36-meter obelisk, inside which is a room of military glory with a small exposition.
