Chizhyk-Pyzhik is a Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

n nursery rhyme

Nursery rhyme

The term nursery rhyme is used for "traditional" poems for young children in Britain and many other countries, but usage only dates from the 19th century and in North America the older ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ is still often used.-Lullabies:...

 which runs as follows:

Чижик-пыжик, где ты был?

На Фонтанке водку пил.

Выпил рюмку, выпил две —

Зашумело в голове.



Chizhik-Pyzhik, where have you been?

Drank vodka on the Fontanka.

Took a shot, took another -

Got a headache.



Chizhik-Pyzhik, gd^je ty byl?

Na fontank^je vodku pil.

Vypil r^jumku, vypil dv^je -

Zashum^jelo v golov^je.

The rhyme refers to the students of the Imperial School of Jurisprudence

Imperial School of Jurisprudence

The Imperial School of Jurisprudence was, along with the Page Corps, the most prestigious school for noble boys in Saint Petersburg, the capital of the Russian Empire....

, who frequented a pub belonging to the merchant Nefedov on the Fontanka

Fontanka

Fontanka is a left branch of the river Neva, which flows through the whole of Central Saint Petersburg, Russia. Its length is 6,700 meters, its width is up to 70 meters, and its depth is up to 3,5 meters. The Fontanka Embankment is lined with the former private residences of Russian nobility.This...

 Quay in Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...

. The school was founded by Duke Peter of Oldenburg

Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg

Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg was the first husband of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia, the youngest sister of Tsar Nicholas II.-Early life:...

 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

Eurasian Siskin

The Eurasian Siskin is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is also called the European Siskin, Common Siskin or just Siskin. Other names include Black-headed Goldfinch, barley bird and aberdevine. It is very common throughout Europe and Asia...

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Hypocoristic

A hypocorism is a shorter form of a word or given name, for example, when used in more intimate situations as a nickname or term of endearment.- Derivation :Hypocorisms are often generated as:...

: chizhik). Because of that, they were nicknamed Chizhyks-Pyzhiks.

Statue

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

First Engineer Bridge

The First Engineer Bridge is one of several bridges that span the Moika River in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The bridge is one of a group of four bridges located near the Mars Field, and opposite the main entrance to the Summer Garden, spanning the Moika River, the Fontanka River, and the Swan Canal...

.

The statue was designed by Georgian

Georgia (country)

Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

 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 fulfilled.