The Manorial Park of Luunja and the Bronze Horse

The heart of the Luunja manorial estate is at the Tartu-Räpina road. The first mention of the manor dates back to the year 1503 when it belonged to Lorenz Hogenstern, the Bürgermeister of Tartu. The park with terraces following the relief of the slope of the primeval valley of the River Emajõgi was founded in the middle of the 18^th century by Count B.C. von Münnich. When the park was reconstructed, a whole system of canals and islands was made on the area flooded by the Emajõgi.

The manor was expropriated by the state in 1919. The main building was destroyed in World War II, but the old cowsheds of the manor have survived. Today horses are kept in them. The fact that horses have enjoyed respect and care at Luunja can be proved by a huge bronze horse, the monument made by the sculptor Endel Taniloo, erected in the park in 1990.