Daily Archives: August 4, 2010

One delightful aspect of Tallinn is the relative abundance of wind vanes (or weather vanes) atop the buildings in the city. One traditional wind vane is that of Vana Toomas (Old Thomas), based on a legend of a medeival archery tournament in which members of the aristocracy would compete to see who could shoot a wooden parrot off the top of a pole. All those who tried failed this endeavor until finally a young boy named Thomas succeeded. Thomas was from a poor family but, because of his skills, he was made an apprentice guard and later became a soldier and guard loved by all. When he died, a metal statue of Thomas was placed atop city hall so he could watch over Tallinn for all time. Continue reading →