Chizhik-Pyzhik

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Chizhyk-Pyzhik statue

Chizhyk-Pyzhik (Russian: Чи́жик-Пы́жик) is a Russian nursery rhyme which runs as follows:

Чижик-пыжик, где ты был?
На Фонтанке водку пил.
Выпил рюмку, выпил две —
Зашумело в голове.

(Chizhyk-Pyzhik, where have you been
Drank vodka on the Fontanka
Took a shot, took another -
Got headaches)

The rhyme refers to the students of the Imperial School of Jurisprudence, who frequented a pub belonging to the merchant Nefedov on the Fontanka Quay in Saint Petersburg. The school was founded by Duke Peter of Oldenburg in the nearby house #6. The students of the college wore uniforms with yellow and green colors, which resembled the colors of the bird called the Siskin (Russian: Чиж; hypocoristic: chizhik). Because of that, they were nicknamed Chizhyks-Pyzhiks.

[edit] Statue

The statue of Chizhik-Pyzhik near the First Engineer Bridge

In 1994, the municipal authorities of St. Petersburg installed a bronze statue of Chizhik-Pyzhik just opposite the former School of Jurisprudence. The statue perches on a ledge in the embankment, in the proximity of the First Engineer Bridge.

The statue was designed by Georgian screenwriter and director Revaz Gabriadze, and it is one of the smallest statues in Saint Petersburg. Its height is 11 centimeters and weight about 5 kilograms.

The statue was stolen on at least three occasions, the last time in 2003, obviously for the purpose of its subsequent remelting. This prompted the city authorities to toy with the idea of replacing it with a statue made of granite or marble, which would make thefts less lucrative.

There is a city tradition, that if one makes a wish and manages to hit the monument with a coin — the wish will be fullfilled.