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Town Hall Square (Raekoja plats), the cobbled and gently sloping market square at the heart of the Old Town, is as old as the city itself. On its southern side stands an imposing reminder of the Hanseatic past: the fifteenth-century Town Hall (Tallinna Raekoda), which boasts an elegant arcade of gothic arches at ground level, and a delicate, slender steeple at its northern end. Look out for the water-spouts in the shape of green-painted dragons just below roof level. Near the summit of the slender steeple you'll spy Vana Toomas (Old Thomas), a sixteenth-century weather vane depicting a medieval mercenary, which has become Tallinn's city emblem. Inside, the two main chambers - the Citizens' Hall and the Council Hall - are almost devoid of ornamentation, except for the latter's elaborately carved benches, the oldest surviving woodcarvings in the country. Of the other old buildings which line the square, the most venerable is the Town Council Pharmacy (Raeapteek) in the northeastern corner, whose dull grey facade dates from the seventeenth century, though the building is known to have existed in 1422 and may be much older. If the Raeapteek leaves you underwhelmed, head for the former Town Gaol (Raevangla) behind the town hall at Raekoja 4/6, which now houses the Town Hall Museum (Raemuuseum; Thurs-Tue 10.30am-5.30pm; 10EEK), an entertaining little photographic collection with views of Tallinn from the days when it was still known as Reval, and portraits of Estonians in traditional costume (captions in English). Close to Raekoja plats are a couple of churches that neatly underline the social divisions of medieval Tallinn. The fourteenth-century Church of the Holy Ghost (Puhavaimu kirik; daily 10am-2pm) tucked away on Puhavaimu - reached via a small passage called Saiakang tanav next to the Raeapteek - is the city's most appealing church, a small Gothic building with stuccoed limestone walls, stepped gables and a tall, verdigris-coated spire. Originally the Town Hall chapel, this later became the place where the native Estonian population worshipped, and in 1535 priests from here compiled an Estonian-language Lutheran catechism, an important affirmation of identity at a time when most Estonians had been reduced to serf status. The ornate clock set into the wall above the entrance dates from 1680 and is the oldest public timepiece in Tallinn. The interior of the church - all dark-veneered wood and cream-painted walls - has an intimate beauty, and contains one of the city's most significant pieces of religious art, an extraordinary triptych altar depicting the Descent of the Holy Ghost (1483) by the Lubeck master Bernt Notke. Contrasting sharply is St Nicholas Church (Niguliste kirik), sitting on raised open ground just southwest of Raekoja plats. This late-Gothic edifice with its huge limestone basilica and vast white tower was originally built by German merchants. Most of what can be seen today dates from the fifteenth century, and has been extensively restored following Soviet bombing raids at the end of World War II. These days the church is a museum (Wed-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat & Sun 11.30am-6pm; 15EEK; English-language pamphlets available) of religious art, its dominating exhibit a spectacular double-winged altar by Herman Rode of Lubeck from 1481, and a largish fragment from a fifteenth-century danse macabre frieze by Bernt Notke.
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