Kiek in de Kök (

Low German : : : : : (70,000) (30,000) (8,000) , familycolor = Indo-European , fam2 = Germanic , fam3 = West Germanic , fam4 = North Sea Germanic , ancestor = Old Saxon , ancestor2 = Middle L ...

: ''Peep into the Kitchen'') is an

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

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 ...

, built in 1475. It gained the name '' Kiek in de Kök'' from the ability of tower occupants to see into kitchens of nearby houses. The tower is 38 m (125 ft) high and has walls 4 m (13 ft) thick. Cannon balls dating back to 1577 are still embedded in its outer walls.

Working life

Throughout its working life, the tower was extensively remodeled. Work in the 16th and 17th centuries saw the two lowest floors become hidden by earth works and the upper floors receive new gun openings and the uppermost floor a new outer wall and ceiling. By 1760, the tower had become obsolete. At this time it became a repository for archives and some floors were converted to apartments.

Historic site

Twentieth-century restoration work saw the tower and surrounding area returned to a more historical look. The tower now serves as a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

and photographic gallery.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kiek in de Kok, Tallinn Buildings and structures in Tallinn History of Tallinn Towers in Estonia Kesklinn, Tallinn Buildings and structures completed in 1475 Towers completed in the 15th century Fortified towers