Tartu Town Hall () is the seat of the city government of
Tartu
Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...
,
Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
. It is located on
Town hall square, in the city centre.
History and architecture
The history of the town hall pre-dates the current town hall, as the present building is the third consecutive town hall built on the same location. It was erected, following the
Great fire of Tartu, between 1782 and 1789 to designs by the German architect
Johann Heinrich Bartholomäus Walther. From the outset, the building was designed to house a number of tenants in addition to the city government; a prison and a storage for weighs and measures were included already in the original drawings. The town hall has always suffered from a lack of space, and to this day a pharmacy is located in parts of the premises.
The architect and mason, J. H. B. Walther, also worked on the
Von Bock House which was across the square and was being completed at the same time as the town hall was constructed.
[Phenomenological Alma Mater. Borders of the Visible and the Invisible in Heritage Protection]
Juban Maiste, 2009, p.195, Tartu University, utlib.ee, retrieved 30 December 2013
The town hall is built in an early
Neoclassical style
Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassici ...
, with
Rococo
Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...
and
Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
details, such as the steeple containing the
carillon
A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a musical keyboard, keyboard and consists of at least 23 bells. The bells are Bellfounding, cast in Bell metal, bronze, hung in fixed suspension, and Musical tuning, tu ...
(which is still played daily). The town hall shows many stylistic similarities with the somewhat earlier
town hall of Narva.
Christmas
Like many town halls in
Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
, for example
Rauma,
Porvoo
Porvoo (; ; ) is a city in Finland. It is located on the south coast of the country, on the Gulf of Finland. Porvoo lies in the eastern part of the Uusimaa region. The population of Porvoo is approximately , while the Porvoo sub-region, sub-re ...
and
Turku
Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...
,
[The Declaration of Christmas Peace]
City of Turku. Retrieved 9 December 2013. Christmas Peace
Christmas Peace (, ) is a traditional Finnish event whereby a town formally announces the beginning of the Christmas season. This practice has its roots in old Swedish legislation and was established by Birger Jarl in the 13th century, building ...
is proclaimed from Tartu's Town Hall just before Christmas.
Christmas Peace is Proclaimed
Tartu Postimees.ee, retrieved 26 December 2013
See also
* Narva Town Hall
* Porvoo Old Town Hall
* Rauma Old Town Hall
References
External links
*
{{Coord, 58, 22, 48, N, 26, 43, 18, E, region:EE, display=title
Buildings and structures in Tartu
City and town halls in Estonia
Tourist attractions in Tartu