The Emajõgi River has shaped Tartu over the centuries and remains one of the most important symbols of the city.

"The Emajõgi River has played a huge role in the development of Tartu, and of course, that role has changed over time," Kristi Musteikis, curator of the Tartu City Museum's new exhibition about the river, told ERR.

"If we look at medieval Tartu or even earlier, the river's importance for trade was incomparably greater than it is today. It can be said that it was the Emajõgi that allowed Tartu to become a prosperous Hanseatic city, as it was located along the trade routes," Musteikis added.

One of the key exhibits in the new exhibition is a model of a boat over a meter high. The boat has returned to Tartu after more than a century in the Lübeck Museum in Germany. The exhibit has already attracted the attention of Tartu shipbuilders from the city's boat workshop (Lodjakoda).

"This model of a boat is exactly the same as our barge Jõmmu. We were delighted when we saw it. Some German visitors came to see Jõmmu itself after the exhibition to see what the full-scale model looks like, where the entrance is, and so on," said Lodjakoda workshop owner Liisa-Loto Kaivo.

And while today both Jõmmu and Suur Suume – two barges built by master craftsmen in Tartu – remain unique, in the past there were many more vessels of their kind.

"We have found data indicating that there were up to 500 boats on Lake Peipus. They varied greatly in size, from large open boats to vessels 35 meters long. In Soviet times, gravel, sand and peat were actively transported on iron barges, which came after the era of these boats ended. Nevertheless, inland shipping on Lake Peipus always flourished when the lake had two shores. Today, of course, there is effectively only one," said Kaivo.

The history of shipping is now pretty well researched, but what lies hidden beneath the waters of Emajõgi remains a mystery. Among the more recent finds is a Ford Sierra car, which was raised from the river by divers in 2024.

"It can be assumed that this car ended up at the bottom of Emajõgi before Estonia even regained its independence. The car had no license plates, and when it was raised only the chassis number remained, but the police could not find any information about it. There is also a lot of trash in the Emajõgi. That needs to be dealt with, and it is being dealt with," said Musteikis.

The Emajõgi exhibition "Tartu: River-Faced," will be on display at the Tartu City Museum until August 30, 2026.

More information about the Tartu City Museum is available here.

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