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All Estonia Tartu Karl Ernst von Baer Statue

Karl Ernst von Baer Statue

Once a year, local students "clean" this statue with a champagne shower.

Tartu, Estonia

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ahvenas
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The champagne shower.   Märt Kose/cc by-sa 4.0
The head washing on April 30, 2018.   marianmitt / Atlas Obscura User
Champagne headwash.   ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
Head washing ritual. It takes usually more than one bottle.   ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
The statue.   ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
The statue.   ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
Champagne headwash.   ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
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Karl Ernst von Baer is one of Estonia’s most famous scientists. He’s considered to be the “father of embryology.” On the 10th anniversary of his death, a monument was erected in a park in Tartu, the city where he received his university education and spent his final years.

Every April 30, the local medical students partake in a strange ritual involving the statue. They gather at the monument and dump champagne on the man’s head. In addition to this “shower,” the students also adorn the statue with a necktie.

When exactly this tradition started is difficult to tell. From 1988 onward, the Estonian Students’ Society has led the effort.

The motivation behind this tradition is also a bit unclear. The most accepted explanation is that the champagne shower is meant to demonstrate improvements in local Estonian’s hygiene habits. Von Baer wrote his dissertation about the endemic diseases of Estonian people. One of his conclusions was that the living conditions and health habits of the lower class needed to be improved.

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Tradition Rites And Rituals Statues

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The head washing takes place on the evening of April 30. A Walpurgis Night student festival is held on that evening. A procession starts from the town hall and moves to the statue, where designated students have the honor of doing the washing.

Community Contributors

Added By

ahvenas

Edited By

marianmitt, Kerry Wolfe

  • marianmitt
  • Kerry Wolfe

Published

April 25, 2019

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Sources
  • http://uudised.tv3.ee/eesti/uudis/2016/05/01/tartu-tudengid-hullasid-ja-pesid-loodusteadlase-karl-ernst-von-baeri-pea-vahutava-vedelikuga-puhtaks/
  • http://blog.ut.ee/k-e-von-baer-7-visual-clues-to-his-impact/
  • https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g274959-d3530547-r354851226-Monument_to_Karl_Ernst_Von_Baer-Tartu_Tartu_County.html
  • https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/aogs.13234
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Ernst_von_Baer
  • http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Karl_Ernst_von_Baer
  • https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baeri_monumendi_pea_pesemine,_volber_2017.jpg
Karl Ernst von Baer Statue
3 Toomemägi
Tartu, Tartu linn, Estonia
Tartu, 51005
Estonia
58.380872, 26.715982
Get Directions

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