An Ivan the Terrible statue in the Russian city of Oryol was found with a bag pulled over its head and a sign with the inscription “Oh, is it hot in here. Oh, what darkness.”
A photograph of the statue was posted on one of Oryol’s online communities on social networking site VKontakte. Since then, it has appeared on Twitter.
The statue of Ivan the Terrible on a horse was erected in Oryol on October 14, 2016. The statue’s installation was preceded by a public debate due to the Russian tsar’s controversial reputation. Oryol’s regional governer Vadim Potomsky and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill spoke in favor of the statue.
Krasnoyarsk-based artist Vladislav Gyultyaev installed an “alternative monument” to Ivan the Terrible in the city of Kansk in mid-October. Taking the form of a stake, the “alternative monument” was a response to the statue of Ivan the Terrible in Oryol. On October 30, it became known that Gyultyaev’s work had been taken down.