Old Tomas or Old Toömas ( est. Vana Toomas ) is one of the most recognizable symbols and guardian of Tallinn , the capital of Estonia . [1] The weather vane in the form of a figure of an old warrior, called Old Thomas, was installed on the top of the spire of the Tallinn City Hall in 1530. However, the earliest found mention of the legend of Old Toomas dates back only to 1881. It appeared in the "Revel Calendar", published in German.
| Old thomas | |
| State | |
|---|---|
| Official site | |
Legend
According to legend, every spring in medieval Tallinn , in front of the Great Sea Gate in the "Parrot Garden" , arranged a celebration. The best arrows of the city competed in shooting crossbows and bows. Whoever knocked down a wooden wooden figure of a parrot, who sat on the top of a high pole, became the king of the shooters. And once in a tournament, when noble men had just lined up and pulled the string, the parrot suddenly collapsed, pierced by someone's arrow. The unknown shooter turned out to be an ordinary Tallinn youth - a poor man named Toomas. Prankish scolded as it should and forced to hoist the target in its place. However, the news had already flown all over Tallinn, and Toomas's mother prepared for the worst ... Fortunately, the case took a different turn — the young man was not punished, but they offered him to become a city guard, which at that time was a great honor for the poor man.
Subsequently, Toomas has repeatedly shown heroism in the battles of the Livonian War and fully justified the confidence placed in him. And by his old age he let go of his luxurious mustache and became remarkably similar to the brave warrior, towering on the tower of the Town Hall. Since then, the weather vane on the Town Hall is called “Old Toomas”. [2]
History
In March 1944, during a bomb raid from the sparks of burning buildings, the keeper of the Town Hall tower caught fire. The burnt spire was reconstructed, and a new copy of Old Thomas was installed in 1952. In 1996 the spire was renewed and the third figure of Old Thomas was installed to guard Tallinn. [3] The original weather vane is preserved in the City Hall. The second figure, established in 1952, is stored in the Tallinn City Museum.
In culture
Old Thomas and the weather vane became the hallmark of the city of Sosnovy Bor in the Leningrad Region. The weather vane is located on the site in front of the Tallinn store, the figure of Old Thomas is placed on the roof of the store itself.