Famous landmarks in Russia
18 landmarks · 10 animals · 8 places to discover
Russia on My Earth Toy, the free 3D toy globe for kids: 18 landmarks, 10 animals, 8 places to discover. Here you can see its flag, capital and size, then fly to every place on the globe.
Russia's flag has three sideways stripes of equal size: white on top, blue in the middle and red at the bottom.
Read about this flag →Russia at a glance
- Capital
- Moscow
- Continent
- Europe and Asia
- Area
- 17,098,246 km²
- Population
- 144.8 million
Russia is the largest country in the world by area. It stretches across Eastern Europe and all of northern Asia, from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean, and covers eleven time zones. Its capital and largest city is Moscow, and its second city is St Petersburg.
Russia is known for icy Siberia, deep forests, onion-domed churches, ballet and space exploration. On the globe you can find St Basil's Cathedral and the Moscow Kremlin, the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, The Motherland Calls statue, the Kazan Kremlin, the volcanoes and geysers of Kamchatka and freezing Oymyakon, plus reindeer, brown bears, Baikal seals and Steller's sea eagles.
Geography and nature
The Ural Mountains divide European Russia in the west from Siberia in the east. Siberia is a vast land of taiga forest, swamps and frozen tundra, crossed by huge rivers such as the Ob, Yenisei and Lena. Lake Baikal is the world's deepest and oldest lake and holds about a fifth of the planet's unfrozen fresh surface water. Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus is Europe's highest peak, and Kamchatka in the far east has dozens of active volcanoes. Winters can be bitterly cold; Oymyakon has recorded temperatures below minus 67 °C.
People, languages and culture
Russian, written in the Cyrillic alphabet, is the official language, but Russia is home to well over a hundred peoples, such as Tatars, Chechens, Bashkirs and Yakuts, many with their own languages. Orthodox Christianity is the largest religion, and Islam and Buddhism also have deep roots. Russia gave the world writers like Leo Tolstoy, the composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky and famous ballet companies. Favourite foods include borscht, a beetroot soup, and blini pancakes. Painted nesting dolls, called matryoshkas, are a well-known folk craft.
History in a nutshell
In the 800s, a state called Kievan Rus' grew up around trading cities. Later, Moscow became the centre of a powerful state, and in 1547 Ivan IV was crowned the first tsar; St Basil's Cathedral was built during his reign. Peter the Great founded St Petersburg in 1703. In 1917 revolutions ended the rule of the tsars, and the Soviet Union was formed. It suffered enormous losses in the Second World War and later launched the first satellite and the first human into space. The Soviet Union broke up in 1991, and Russia became a separate country.
Fun facts
- Yuri Gagarin became the first person in space in 1961, flying once around the Earth.
- The Trans-Siberian Railway from Moscow to Vladivostok is over 9,000 kilometres long, the longest railway line in the world.
- The Baikal seal is the only seal species that lives only in fresh water, and it is found nowhere but Lake Baikal.
- Russia is so wide that when it is evening in Moscow, it is already the next morning in Kamchatka.
Famous landmarks in Russia
St. Basil's Cathedral
Russia · Europe
A church on Red Square famous for its cluster of colourful, swirling onion domes.
Moscow Kremlin
Russia · Europe
A fortified complex of red-brick walls, towers, palaces and cathedrals at the heart of Russian power.
The Motherland Calls
Russia · Europe
A sword-raising colossus commemorating the Battle of Stalingrad, one of the tallest statues of a woman.
Winter Palace (Hermitage)
Russia · Europe
The Baroque former residence of the Russian tsars, now part of the Hermitage Museum.
Oymyakon
Russia · Asia
A small village in the Sakha Republic called the "Pole of Cold": its official record low of −67.7 °C, measured in 1933, is among the coldest ever in a permanently inhabited place; winters average around −50 °C.
Cathedral of Christ the Saviour
Russia · Europe
The main cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church: Konstantin Thon's Russian-Byzantine design (completed 1883), demolished in 1931 and rebuilt in 1995–2000; a white cube with kokoshnik gables under five gilded domes, 103 m to the top cross.
Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood
Russia · Europe
Built where Alexander II was assassinated, with patterned onion domes and walls of mosaic inside.
Vostochny Cosmodrome
Russia · Asia
Russia's first civilian spaceport, built on the taiga plain of Amur Oblast.
Main building of Moscow State University
Russia · Europe
The largest of Stalin's 'Seven Sisters' (Lev Rudnev, 1953): a 240 m stepped central tower with a spire and star, 18-storey wings and four side towers; it was Europe's tallest building until 1990.
Klyuchevskaya Sopka
Russia · Asia
Eurasia's highest active volcano (about 4,750 m) on the Kamchatka Peninsula, a near-perfect cone that often trails steam and ash; the Volcanoes of Kamchatka are a World Heritage site.
Federation Tower
Russia · Europe
Sergei Tchoban and Peter Schweger's two glass towers on a shared podium in Moscow-City; the 374 m Vostok (2017) is Europe's second-tallest building after the Lakhta Center, and both roofs slope toward the gap meant for a central spire that was never built.
Kazan Kremlin & Qolşärif Mosque
Russia · Europe
The hilltop citadel of Kazan on the Volga, where the blue-roofed Qolşärif Mosque with its four minarets stands beside the Annunciation Cathedral and the leaning Söyembikä Tower — a UNESCO site where Islamic and Orthodox traditions meet.
Manpupuner Rock Formations
Russia · Other
Seven weathered rock pillars, 30–42 m tall, on a remote plateau in the northern Urals of the Komi Republic — the "Seven Strong Men", one of the Seven Wonders of Russia.
Mercury City Tower
Russia · Europe
A 338.8 m tower (2013) clad in copper-gold glass whose long, pointed-ended mass steps down in sloping cuts; it was the tallest building in Europe when completed.
Valley of Geysers
Russia · Asia
A narrow canyon in Kamchatka's Kronotsky Reserve holding some 90 geysers — the world's second-largest geyser field, discovered in 1941.
Golden Bridge & Russky Bridge, Vladivostok
Russia · Asia
The Golden Bridge across Vladivostok's Golden Horn Bay and the Russky Bridge to Russky Island — one of the world's longest cable-stayed spans — both finished for the 2012 APEC summit.
Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre
Russia · Asia
Russia's largest theatre, crowned by a vast 60 m silver dome — the landmark of Novosibirsk, with its grand colonnade facing Lenin Square.
Evolution Tower
Russia · Europe
A 246 m office tower (RMJM / Tony Kettle with Philipp Nikandrov) whose floors each turn by about 3°, twisting the whole building through some 156°, with white ribbons spiralling up its corners.
Animals in Russia
Places to discover in Russia
Questions
What is the capital of Russia?
The capital of Russia is Moscow.
Which continent is Russia in?
Russia is in Europe and Asia.
How big is Russia?
Russia covers about 17,098,246 km².
How many people live in Russia?
About 144.8 million people live in Russia.
What are the most famous landmarks in Russia?
Some of the best-known landmarks in Russia are St. Basil's Cathedral, Moscow Kremlin, The Motherland Calls, Winter Palace (Hermitage) and Oymyakon. My Earth Toy has 18 landmarks from Russia on its free 3D globe, each with a photo and quick facts.
Which animals can you find in Russia on My Earth Toy?
On the globe you can find Reindeer, Eurasian brown bear, Snowy owl, Great grey owl and Steller's sea eagle in Russia.
Sources
Updated: 2026-10-30