Palamuse Museum


This museum is spread over an 18th-century parish clerk's house and focuses on the life of rural schoolchildren in 19th-century Estonia; the schoolhouse where future novelist Oskar Luts studied from 1895 to 1899, as immortalised in his most famous book, Kevade (1912–13); and rural grounds and outbuildings. The subsequent film adaptation was also shot here and you'll see displays on all three: the film, the book and the writer.

Kevade's primary audience is Estonian, so it's not surprising that English captions are limited. However, it's still fun to potter around the re-created classroom, dorm and teacher's bedroom, and to look at the black-and-white stills of the movie and various stage productions.

Best of all, you can hire a slingshot and attempt to re-create a scene in the movie by breaking a window in a neighbouring building. Museum staff assure us that kids have a much better success rate at this than their parents do – and in any case, the window is quickly replaced.


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