Book launch of the edited volume “The Manor as a Phenomenon of Baltic Cultural History: Crossdisciplinary Perspectives”

Roundtable with Reet Bender (University of Tartu), Karsten Brüggemann (Tallinn University), Tiina-Mall Kreem (Gesellschaft für deutschbaltische Kultur in Estland) and Anneli Randla (Estonian Academy of Arts), moderated by Ulrike Plath (Tallinn University).

The edited volume:
Manors are one of the most well-known and beloved phenomena in Estonian cultural history
– they are widely studied and visited, written and spoken about, photographed and filmed,
restored, bought and sold. In fact, the manor is one of the few elements of Baltic German
heritage that has been domesticated into Estonian national cultural memory and heritage landscapes. However, it could also be argued that all this has flattened their public image.

This book is based on the conviction that the manor is key to a better understanding of Baltic history and culture, as well as of the transfers between Estonian and Baltic German cultures. For this, however, we need to look beyond the manor house and its aristocratic owners, and apply multidisciplinary approaches in order to find new perspectives. In this edited volume, scholars from a variety of disciplines explore the manor as a phenomenon around which many
of the major themes of the transnational history of the Baltic space unfold.

New perspectives are opened up on the early history of the manor, the importance of material culture and art as a source of manor history, the role of research and restoration practices in shaping the meaning of the manor, the cultural imagery and representations associated with the manor, and the ambivalent relationship between Baltic Germans and Estonians.

Editors: Kristina Jõekalda, Linda Kaljundi, Ulrike Plath

Authors: Riin Alatalu, Toomas Hiio, Hilkka Hiiop, Kristina Jõekalda, Inna Põltsam-Jürjo,
Linda Kaljundi, Andreas Kalkun, Marju Kõivupuu, Kadi Polli, Heiki Pärdi, Maris Saagpakk,
Hannes Vinnal

Publisher: Tallinn University Press, 2025

The roundtable is in Estonian. The book is sold with a reduced price during the event.