Malchik
Stray mongrel stabbed to death at the Moscow Metro From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Malchik (Russian: Мальчик, lit. 'Little Boy'; c. 1996 – December 2001) was a black mongrel stray dog living in Moscow, Russia. For about three years, Malchik lived at the Mendeleyevskaya station on the Moscow Metro. In 2001, he was killed when a 22-year-old woman, Yuliana Romanova, stabbed him with a kitchen knife.[1] The incident sparked a wave of public outrage regarding the treatment of animals, and, in 2007, a monument was erected in Malchik's honour at Mendeleyevskaya station.[2]
![]() Compassion monument on a 2019 postage stamp of Russia | |
Species | Dog |
---|---|
Breed | Mongrel |
Sex | Male |
Born | c. 1996 Moscow, Russia |
Died | December 2001 Moscow, Russia |
Nation from | Russian |
Occupation | Station resident |
Known for | Popular resident at the Mendeleyevskaya station, stabbed to death by a railway commuter |
Appearance | Black |
Life at Mendeleyevskaya station
Malchik was a black mongrel stray dog, who lived at the Mendeleyevskaya station for about three years.[3] He became a popular station "resident" among commuters and railway employers, who often brought him food,[1][4] and he often defended his territory against drunks and other dogs.[1]
Death
Summarize
Perspective
On a winter evening in December 2001,[5] 22-year-old Yuliana Romanova (Volkova) was passing through Mendeleyevskaya station with her pet Staffordshire Bull Terrier.[6] They encountered Malchik in a pedestrian underpass, and the stray dog barked at the pair.[1][7] One report holds that Romanova set her dog on the sleeping Malchik.[8][6] Romanova reached into her purse, removed a kitchen knife, and stabbed Malchik six times in the back, chest and stomach.[8] The dog died several minutes later.[1]

A shopkeeper from a nearby stall tried to prevent the attack, but Malchik died before the police and an ambulance arrived.[9] The woman was said to have fled the scene and there was no formal investigation initially.[9] However, Romanova was traced back as the killer by Irina Ozyornaya, an activist and investigative reporter of the popular newspaper Izvestiya, who started writing articles about the incident, identifying Romanova as a young fashion model.[9] When contacted by the reporter, Romanova reportedly shrugged off the incident.[9] Later it was revealed that Romanova has a long history of cruelty to animals and psychiatric treatment.[10] After a year of campaigning, however, Romanova was arrested and tried, and underwent one year of psychiatric treatment.[1] The story of Malchik's death received widespread coverage in the Russian media.[4]
Monument
In February 2007, a monument entitled "Compassion "[2] (or "Sympathy";[8] Russian: Сочувствие, Sochuvstviye) was erected at Mendeleyevskaya station.[4] The monument was funded by public donations.[4][11] A bronze sculpture of Malchik was placed on a monolithic pedestal of serpentinite.[2] It was erected on the night of 15/16 February 2007 and officially unveiled on 17 February.[2] Among the artists responsible for the monument were sculptor Aleksandr Tsigal , artist Sergey Tsigal , architect Andrey Nalich, and designer Peter Nalich.[2] The unveiling ceremony was attended by notable artists, many of whom had donated money for the monument's installation, including Andrey Makarevich, Mikhail Shirvindt , Veniamin Smekhov, Oleg Anofriev, Ludmila Kasatkina and Sergey Yursky.[2] The Russian inscription on the monument reads " 'Compassion' is dedicated to humane relationships with homeless animals."[12] The monument has been cited as one of Moscow's most unusual tourist attractions.[13] As with other monuments in the Moscow metro stations,[14] passersby rub the monument's nose for good luck.[7]
Legacy
Joanna Bednarek wrote that Malchik's story typifies the "peculiar mix of cruelty and sentimentality present in our approach to domesticated animals, particularly dogs."[11] In 2019, the postal department of Russia released a postage stamp portraying the Compassion monument in the memory of Malchik.[citation needed]
See also
References
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