The Monument to Soviet Tank Crews was a World War II memorial located in Prague. It is also known as the Pink Tank because it was controversially painted pink in 1991, first by installation artist David Černý and a second time by members of parliament in protest at his arrest.
The monument in 1961
The monument, depicted on a 1951 USSR stamp
"Pink" Soviet tank "Joseph Stalin" formerly as No. 23 now in Lešany military museum
The Pink Tank by Černý on the Vltava river, 24 June 2011
The finger
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In Western culture, "the finger", or the middle finger also represented as "🖕" is an obscene hand gesture. The gesture communicates moderate to extreme contempt, and is roughly equivalent in meaning to "fuck you", "fuck me", "shove it up your ass/arse", "up yours", or "go fuck yourself". It is performed by showing the back of a hand that has only the middle finger extended upwards, though in some locales, the thumb is extended. Extending the finger is considered a symbol of contempt in several cultures, especially in the Western world. Many cultures use similar gestures to display their disrespect, although others use it to express pointing without intentional disrespect. The gesture is usually used to express contempt but can also be used humorously or playfully.
The Cynic philosopher Diogenes, pictured by Gérôme with the large jar in which he lived; when strangers at the inn were expressing their wish to catch sight of the great orator Demosthenes, Diogenes is said to have stuck out his middle finger and exclaimed "This, for you, is the demagogue of the Athenians."
Boston Braves baseball pitcher Charles "Old Hoss" Radbourn pictured giving the finger to cameraman, 1886. First known photograph of the gesture.
A message on the Vltava river under Prague Castle from the Czech sculptor David Černý to the pro-Kremlin president Miloš Zeman before the precipitated 2013 parliament election in the Czech Republic.