Odd objects in Cambridge

Something is constantly going on here. One can spend a lifetime walking around and keep finding new things. Tourists with maps explore sights, students go for dates the botanic gardens, parents with children spend afternoons in parks and teenagers hand around shopping malls. One of my most favourite places is Grantchester Meadows which lie outside of town to the west from Cambridge. I have come across a lot of noticeable things on my walks. Here is a short list of a few objects that got especially stuck in my memory.

Wittgenstein’s grave
The Ascesion cemetary is sometimes said to have more IQ interred in one acre than any other place in the world. It is this inconspicuous part of Cambridge where Ludwig Wittgenstein, perhaps the greatest philosopher of the 20th century, who was known for his eccentricity and a peculiar style of philosophising, is buried. His grave is tiny and well hidden, covered with dirt and moss. It is practically impossible to find without a guide. Wittgenstein allegedly wanted it like this. The grave frequently attracts a lot of his admirers, who sometimes place numerous unexpected objects on it, such as a lemon, a pork pie or a Buddhist prayer wheel. People also sometimes decorate it with ornaments made of small coins. What is more, there used to be a miniature ladder on it, probably referring to one metaphor which Wittgenstein made use of in his famous book, Tractatus logico-philosophicus.

Soviet flag
Hanging on the wall in the bar, there is a USSR flag in King’s College. It was placed there more than ten years ago. This college is known for its left-wing activism and it used to be a habit of many of its students to draw communist symbols on the red bar walls. The staff ones decided to end this vandalism by putting a soviet flag on the wall. Although it is still there, it has stirred a number of controversies and disputes throughout its existence. Every few years, some students make a campaign to have the flag removed. Last year, one such campaign was initiated by a Ukrainian student for whom the flag is a symbol of oppression. Most students, however, defend the flag and want to keep as an amusing and slightly provocative cultural artefact. Whenever there has been a vote so far, its advocates won.

Statue of a horse
The first court of Jesus college is dominated by an elegant statue of a horse by the sculpturer Flanagan. From the first moment, it is asking to be ridden. However, there is a little problem: for a single ride, one gets expelled from Cambridge. For some reason, the college is extremely sensitive to this and issues many warnings to get students overcome temptation. It is therefore no surprise that it has become a legend and virtually everyone has a secret desire to try to ride it. Cambridge students have even chosen it as one of the five challenges one should complete during one’s studies. The other four challenges require you to pee into the fountain in King’s College, to streak round the Trinity Great Court, to have sex up John’s chapel tower and bridge-jump queen’s mathematical bridge.

Chair leg
Henry VIII, who founded some of the most famous Cambridge colleges, stands above the gate of one of them till this day. He is holding a chair leg in his hand. How did this come about? He used to hold a sword but it got lost a long time ago. A few decades ago, a window cleaner with a good sense of humour noticed his empty hand and put the first thing that he could find in it, an old chair leg. Everyone found it so amusing that they decided to leave it there. This gave rise to a new tradition. The college even protects it:  when another joker tried to replace the leg with a bicycle pump, they officially had it put back.

Soil pile
The last object in my list is not an ancient mysterious artefact, but I have a story connected to it. I was once on a walk on Grantchester Meadwos when I saw a suspicious and slightly nervous man digging a hole in the ground. As a fan of English murder mysteries, which are full of such scenes, I became curious and carefully approached him. When he noticed me, he looked more apologetic than scared, so I asked him what he was doing. He said that he was a famous Dutch artist and that he was preparing for his new exhibition in Amsterdam. He was supposedly creating some sort of series of photographs of natural objects. I am not sure if I did well by trusting him. Nonetheless, the pile of soil he made is still there, so whenever I am passing by, I remember him.