MOSCOW - Mashuk-Akva Term, a spa in the Russian city of Zheleznovodsk, has erected an 800-pound bronze syringe bulb upheld by three angels in celebration of enemas. Alexander Kharchenko, director of the spa, said the monument was created without kitsch or obscenity.
"It is a successful work of art," he told the Associated Press. "An enema is almost a symbol of our region."
In the Caucasus Mountains, dozens of spas are known for routinely administering enemas with water from the region's mineral springs to treat digestive and other complaints. The monument, which cost approximately $42,000 and was installed in front of Kharchenko's spa Wednesday, was designed by sculptor Svetlana Avakina, who said the 5-foot-high monument was designed with "irony and humor."
"This device is eternal," she said. "It will never change. We could promote this brand, turn it into a franchise with souvenirs and awards for medical doctors."
Svetlana also said the angels holding up the bronze syringe bulb were designed to resemble those on works by Alessandro Botticelli, an Italian Renaissance painter.
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