Von Bock House is in Ülikooli Street in Tartu in

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

. The building is owned by

Tartu University The University of Tartu (UT; et, Tartu Ülikool; la, Universitas Tartuensis) is a university in the city of Tartu in Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is the only classical university in the country, and also its biggest ...

, and is on the same street as the university's main building. Von Bock house has a mural of the university's main building on one of its walls.

History

The building was commissioned following the Great Fire of Tartu (then called Dorpat) which consumed the wooden buildings of the city in 1775. The builder's German born architect was Johann Heinrich Bartholomäus Walter who also worked on

Tartu Town Hall Tartu Town Hall ( et, Tartu raekoda) is the seat of the city government of Tartu, Estonia. It is located on Town hall square, in the city centre. History and architecture The history of the town hall pre-dates the current town hall, as the pre ...

which was nearby. The house was built for Christina Wilcke and was nominally complete by 1780.Phenomenological Alma Mater. Borders of the Visible and the Invisible in Heritage Protection
Juban Maiste, 2009, p.195, Tartu University, utlib.ee, retrieved 30 December 2013 The building is named for Colonel Magnus Johann von Bock who owned the building. The Bock family had their main manor in

Saare County Saare County ( et, Saare maakond or ''Saaremaa''; la, Oesel; german: Ösel; sv, Ösel) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It consists of Saaremaa, the largest island of Estonia, and several smaller islands near it, most notably Muhu, Ruhnu, A ...

. The building was described as being 147 by 45 (Rhein) feet in area. It started with a vaulted basement and a ground floor that was dedicated to service and which was also partially vaulted. The first floor had a large room with an extravagant plastered ceiling designed for entertaining. However the Bock family had agreed for the building to be used by

. New building work was approved and it was agreed to construct a library, lecture rooms and a place for public debate. The building was adapted in 1783 to 1786. Von Bocki maja Tartus

The new project commissioned artists and decorators who covered the staircase and surrounding areas in a bold black and white check pattern that was said to match the arabesque stucco of the upper floor ceiling. One room was wallpapered with a floral design that also included three large landscape murals. The hall had a white fancy ceiling whilst the walls were covered in another arabesque design around the five large windows with two white tiled stoves to provide heating. The new German speaking University was re-launched and had its new charter was confirmed by

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. The son o ...

in 1802.History
Tartu University, trrieved 30 December 2013 M.J. von Bock died in 1807 and the converted building was bought by the University of Tartu in 1839. The house has had a series of different roles since then including the University's medical facility, a veterinary school, and the library of the Estonian Learned Society.Von Hock House
VisitEstonia.com, retrieved 28 December 2013 The learned society had been founded in 1839 with the aim of investigating and improving culture in Estonia. The society's first activity was to create education for the local population.

2007 renovation and another mural

Today the building is still owned by the university and in 2006 to 2007 the building was renovated under the managemement of Merje Müürisepp. Müürisepp had the facade restored to light yellow and the rest of the building painted a dark pink. A vast external mural was constructed on the side of the house. The mural was a reproduction of a lithograph by Louis Höflinger who had lived in Tartu around 1860. The

Art Museum of Estonia The Art Museum of Estonia ( et, Eesti Kunstimuuseum) was established in 1919. Originally based in Kadriorg Palace, the museum has expanded across several sites and today exhibits both international and local art works. At the end of the 1970s, in ...

has a large collection of his work. The design was prepared by Maarja Roosi. The mural shows the main building of the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; et, Tartu Ülikool; la, Universitas Tartuensis) is a university in the city of Tartu in Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is the only classical university in the country, and also its biggest ...

exactly as it was recorded in 1860 by Höflinger. It was constructed by students under the supervision of university staff.Von Bock House
University of Tartu, retrieved 29 December 2013 The mural was accompanied by an exhibition of photographs that was shown at the windows of the house in 2007. The photographs were arranged by Alan Madisson and featured notable academics from the university. The renovation of the house was completed at a cost of three million kroons in September 2007. Four years after the renovation the plasterwork of the building developed cracks which seemed to have been caused by subsistence. This subject of the mural, the University's main building, is further down Ülikooli Street and it is possible to view both the mural and the main building at the same time. :Commons:File:Tartu_-_Ülikooli_16.jpg, Ilia, Wikimedia Commons, retrieved 29 December 2012

References

External links

{{Tartu landmarks Buildings and structures in Tartu History of Tartu 18th-century establishments in Estonia Houses completed in 1786 University of Tartu Tourist attractions in Tartu