Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Borneo orangutan
Malaysia • 12 days, 11 nights
Wild Borneo: Secrets of an Ancient Rainforest
from
Pastel de nata
Portugal • 8 days, 7 nights
Portugal: A Culinary Adventure from Porto to Lisbon
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Ana de Mendoza y de la Cerda, Princess of Éboli, was imprisoned for six months in the tower.
Torreón de Pinto (Tower of Pinto)
Rococo staircase to the musicians’s gallery.
Biscari Palace
Statues of Qin Hui and Lady Wang.
Qin Hui Statue at Yue Fei Temple
The Salt Canyon.
Salt Canyon
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
 Fenway Park at night
How Was Your First Trip With Your Significant Other?
about 7 hours ago
Ivan the Terra Bus
The Bus, the Myth, the Legend: Ivan the Terra Bus
1 day ago
Pigeons were included in a series of 1891 illustrations entitled “Household Pets.”
What Makes a Pest a Pest?
2 days ago
Burros Alfa and Beto, seen here with Luis Soriano in 2008, have been helping the teacher deliver books for more than 20 years.
How One Man and His ‘Biblioburro’ Spreads Literacy in Rural Colombia
4 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Russia Sosnogorsk Manpupuner Rock Formations

Manpupuner Rock Formations

Gigantic natural towers in a Russian plateau.

Sosnogorsk, Russia

Added By
ser flac
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
The Seven Strong Men in the Northern Ural Mountains  
The Seven Strong Men in the Northern Ural Mountains  
The massive stand-alone rock formation  
Snow covers the Manpupuner formations  
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Tucked away in the Northern Ural Mountains of Russia, seven massive rock formations inexplicably explode from the flat landscape around them. Jutting up to heights of over 200 feet, the Manpupuner Rock Formations have no obvious origin and command a powerful spiritual presence for visitors.

The Manpupuner Formations, also known as the Seven Strong Men, are more or less unknown outside of Russia. Akin to the Easter Island giants, the seven formations are mysterious, starkly contrasting their plateau environment. Likely some sort of karst formation, the rocks feel like the remnants of some long lost civilization.

Locally, the Seven Strong Men have adopted a legendary status, especially considering their location just a hair below the Arctic Circle. Adding to their legend are reports of a feeling of contentedness when visiting the towers. According to some visitors, all desires seem to float away during a visit to the area and local lore claims that spirits gathered in the area during ancient times.

Aside from trying to understand these bizarre monuments, visitors looking for a greater challenge attempted to climb the Strong Men. But since the Rocks are holy places to the indigenous Mansi people this is not well received.

Related Tags

Geological Oddities Geology

Community Contributors

Added By

serflac

Edited By

mdornsei, serpent

  • mdornsei
  • serpent

Published

September 7, 2011

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manpupuner_rock_formations
  • http://www.documentingreality.com/forum/f181/manpupuner-rock-formation-29597/
  • http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/the-mysterious-7-strong-men.html
Manpupuner Rock Formations
Sosnogorsk, 169502
Russia
62.23122, 59.237011

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Russia

Russia

Europe

Places 189
Stories 58

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Russia

Russia

Europe

Places 189
Stories 58

Related Places

  • Kaohsiung City, Taiwan

    Tianliao Moon World

    Visit Taiwan’s badlands, which allows visitors to feel like they’re walking on the moon.

  • Russia

    Ulakhan-Sis Range

    A remote Arctic mountain range is home to "granite cities" found almost nowhere else.

  • A beach on the island with distinctive rock formations.

    Malpe, India

    Thonsepar

    These four small islands contain unique hexagonal rock formations.

  • The winding curves of Ybykty Canyon.

    Koyulus, Kazakhstan

    Ybykty Canyon

    This small canyon is home to a treasure trove of geological oddities.

  • Healy, Alaska

    Suntrana Canyon

    This often-overlooked canyon dazzles and intrigues with its many layers of colors, shapes and odd formations.

  • Looking down at the water-carved tunnels

    Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland

    Trümmelbach Falls

    Visit Europe's largest subterranean waterfall, carved by water from the glaciers of the towering peaks surrounding the valley.

  • A view of the perfectly round Lac Pavin.

    Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise, France

    Lac Pavin

    This volcanic crater lake is renowned for its perfectly round shape, stunning blue-green waters, and unique geological properties.

  • Pyramids of Euseigne

    Hérémence, Switzerland

    Pyramides d'Euseigne

    These spindly, stone-capped formations are the product of glacial deposits and thousands of years of erosion.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.