Great Guild Hall – Estonian History Museum

The Great Guild Hall was the second largest secular building after the Town Hall in Medieval Tallinn.

The Great Guild was an organization uniting the city’s wealthy merchants, and intended for protecting its members’ common interests. Tallinn’s mayor and the city fathers were also chosen from among the members of the Great Guild. Hence, it is no coincidence that the Guild’s coat of arms and the small version of Tallinn city’s coat of arms are identical: a white cross on a red background.

The Great Guild accepted as members only local merchants who owned a house and were married. Foreigners could become members only if they had settled in Tallinn for good, and had married the widow of a member of the Guild.

The building was built in 1407-1417 as a gathering place for the merchants who belonged to the Guild. The building’s size and grandeur is a testimony to the wealth and influence of the guild’s merchants. The guild’s auxiliary rooms were built at the Börs passageway which connects Lai and Pikk streets. The tax chamber and the silver chamber were located in the gate building of Pikk Street. On Lai Street, the "bride’s chamber" and the guild’s servant’s quarters were found. The Börs Passage passes through the gate buildings.

The building now preserves the interior and exterior it had in the 15th century, with minor revisions. The façade of the building has almost entirely preserved its original appearance, graced with the Great Guild’s coat of arms and bronze knockers from 1430 on the door.
Today the Great Guild Hall houses the Estonian History Museum. The permanent exhibition covers Estonian history from pre-history through the 18th century.