The cobbled and gently sloping Town Hall Square (Raekoja plats) is as old as Tallinn itself. Surrounded by a handsome ensemble of pastel-coloured houses, the square has become a trademark of both the city and Estonia as a whole, reproduced on innumerable souvenirs and tourist posters.

The Town Hall

On the square’s southern side stands an imposing reminder of the city’s Hanseatic past: the fifteenth-century Town Hall (Tallinna raekoda), boasting an elegant arcade of Gothic arches and a delicate, slender steeple. Look out for the waterspouts in the shape of green dragons just below the roof.

Near the summit of the Town Hall’s steeple you’ll spy Old Thomas (Vana Toomas), a sixteenth-century weather vane in the form of a stout, spear-wielding sentry. According to legend, the real-life model for the weather vane was a local lad who excelled at the springtime “parrot-shooting” contests (which involved firing crossbow bolts at a painted wooden bird on top of a pole) organized by Tallinn’s German-speaking elite. Unable to receive a prize owing to his low-born status, Toomas was instead rewarded with the job of town guard for life. Subsequently immortalized in copper, Toomas continues to watch over Tallinn and its citizens.

The Pharmacy