Tsar Pushka (Russian: Царь-пушка, literally "Tsar-cannon") is a huge cannon, commissioned in 1586 by Russian Tsar Feodor and cast by Andrey Chokhov. The cannon weighs nearly 38 metric tonnes and has a length of 5.34 meters (17.5 feet), a calibre of 890 mm (35 inches), and an external diameter of 1200 mm (41 inches). The Guinness Book of Records lists it as the largest howitzer ever made.
The cannon has never been fired and it may have been intended as only a showpiece of military might and engineering. Along with a new carriage, the 2 ton cannonballs surrounding the cannon were added in 1835 and are larger than the diameter of its barrel; it was, in fact, designed to fire 800 kg stone grapeshot.[citation needed] According to legend, the cannonballs were manufactured in St Petersburg, and were intended to be a humorous addition and a symbol of the friendly rivalry between Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The cannon is decorated with reliefs, including one depicting Tsar Feodor Ivanovich on a horse. The original wooden carriage was made in the early 19th century, but it was destroyed by fire in 1812.
The cannon is within the walls of the Moscow Kremlin next to the Tsar bell, which is similarly massive and the largest bell in the world, but it has never been rung. The cannon was last restored in 1980.
A replica of the cannon was made in 2001 at the Izhevsk machine-building factory. It was given to the Ukrainian city of Donetsk and now is installed near the Donetsk city administration building.
