We think we have a pretty good sense of how big things – until they’re compared to something relatively common.

Once you put things in perspective you can appreciate just how much weight or work or inches of sheer terror are involved in everything from a pyramid to a wombat.

These 15 photos show the true size of some things we don’t see every day – and a few of them are sure to raise your eyebrows.

1. Highway signs

When they’re way up high, we rarely think about how big a road sign has to be for us to see it.

But this shot shows just how glad you should be that they’re secured tightly to their poles.

2. Moose

Did you think a moose was just a slightly bigger deer with some enormous horns? Well, you were right about that last part.

The Canadians on Reddit were happy to chime in and say this was not an exaggeration – they’ve even seen bigger. Just maybe not in a parking lot.

3. Eagle talons

We hear about eagles picking up flying away with unlikely things (such as deer), but now we see how that works.

Those things are huge!

4. The heart of a blue whale

Not only do we not typically see blue whales in person, but we never see their organs.

And while we know it’s the largest animal on Earth, something about the size of just its heart is really stunning (though this is a replica).

Check out the human for comparison.

5. Horse lungs

Those are some healthy looking lungs – this horse was clearly not a smoker.

They’re also huge.

While the average human lung capacity is 4 liters, a horse’s is roughly 55.

6. The Pyramids of Giza

We’ve seen photos from afar of people standing in front of the pyramids, but this photo of a woman sitting on the blocks really puts it in perspective.

How’d they get it all done? (And don’t say aliens.)

7. Saltwater crocodile

Well, this looks like an interesting experience. We’ll take a hard pass on this tourist excursion in Darwin, Australia and just be glad someone got in there for size comparison.

We wonder what the crocodile thinks about these human food teasers coming and going every few hours.

8. How big is a billion?

For most of us who will never have a million anything (much less a billion), these big numbers can seem almost meaningless.

But one Twitter user put it all in perspective in a genius way and now we know why billionaires can buy whatever they want.

9. Aircraft carrier anchor chain

Ok, so you probably haven’t spent much time thinking about the size of the chain that’s required to anchor an aircraft carrier in place.

But compared to us puny humans, they’re enormous.

10. Michelangelo’s David

If you thought this sculpture was human-sized, think again.

Imagine the skill it took to create something so majestic at this scale.

11. The Sun, compared to the Earth

It’s hard for the human brain to fully comprehend the size of the planet we live on much less other objects in the solar system.

And even if you know the dimensions of each, it’s still worth marveling at just how many Earths would fit in the space occupied by that big ball of hot plasma.

Roughly 1.3 MILLION of them.

12. Wind turbine blade

And this is a small one!

This 135-foot blade will move at 100 mph, even though wind turbines look pretty slow when you see them in motion.

13. Silverback gorilla

Its hand alone is enough to make you want to skip the handshake if one of these creatures is in a bad mood.

The average silverback gorilla weighs over 350 pounds, but they can top 400 pounds.

So be polite.

14. Wolves (at least compared to coyotes)

Wolf? Coyote? How different could they be? Very, it turns out.

A wolf weighs at least twice as much as a coyote. Even if you were to be attacked by a coyote (which is rare), it’s unlikely to do much harm.

But don’t mess around with a wolf.

15. A wombat

If you thought wombats were small, it’s best to remember that they live in Australia, where NOTHING is small.

They grow up to about 40 inches long and tend to weight between 45-77 pounds. And they will knock you over if they want to.

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So which of these unexpectedly giant things surprised you the most?

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Source: h/t Bored Panda