Make Way For Diplomacy: How Boston’s ‘Ducklings’ Helped Ease U.S.-Soviet Tensions; Bob Shaffer; The ARTery

By AllAboutWorldHeritage on March 31, 2017 • ( Leave a comment )

Russia – Ensemble of the Novodevichy Convent

Nine bronze ducks call Boston’s Public Garden home: Mrs. Mallard followed by Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack and Quack. The ducks from Robert McCloskey’s 1941 children’s book “Make Way For Ducklings” have become a Boston icon since their installation 30 years ago.

As it turns out, the ducklings call another city home as well — Moscow. A copy of the “Make Way For Ducklings” sculpture was installed there in 1991.

Then-First Lady Barbara Bush gave the sculpture to Raisa Gorbachev, Mikhail Gorbachev’s wife. A plaque on the Russian ducklings sculpture — written in both English and Russian — says the sculpture was given “in love and friendship to the children of the Soviet Union on behalf of the children of the United States.”

Easing Nuclear Tension With Ducklings

The whole process actually started a year before in 1990.