Võru’s most revered sight is the F.R. Kreuzwald Memorial Museum, occupying the property where the author of Estonia’s national epic, Kalevipoeg (“Son of Kalev”), practised as a doctor from 1833 until his retirement in 1877.

A lifelong enthusiast for Estonian folklore, Kreuzwald was inspired by the example of Finnish contemporary Elias Lönnrot, who had created a Finnish national epic in the 1830s by bundling together traditional folk tales to form the Kalevala. Kreuzwald aimed to create an Estonian epic of similar scale: Kalevipoeg was the result.

Kalevipoeg

Published in serial form between 1857 and 1859, Kalevipoeg immediately made Kreuzwald’s reputation and has enjoyed a sacred position in Estonian culture ever since. It was initially believed that Kalevipoeg was a compilation of genuine folk tales – it only emerged later that Kreuzwald had made most of the story up based on common folk motifs, but this if anything enhanced its reputation as a work of creative power.

The museum

The exhibition opens with a rather stolid, text-based survey of Kreuzwald’s life, and it’s something of a relief to move on to the barn in the courtyard, where works of art inspired by his writings are displayed – look out for leading artist Kristjan Raud’s celebrated illustrations for the inter-war editions of Kalevipoeg.

Finally, visitors are ushered into Kreuzwald’s waiting room and surgery. An inkpot in the form of a dragon is the only artefact on display that Kreuzwald actually owned, but the period furnishings convey a strong flavour of nineteenth-century life.

Practical Info

Kreuzwaldi 31

Open: April - September Wednesday - Sunday 10:00 - 18:00; October - March: Wednesday - Sunday 10:00 - 17:00.

Tickets: €4