Võru gets its own twist on the 'Northern frog' with new statue

A large frog sculpture has been installed in South Estonia and symbolizes the endurance of the Võru language and culture across generations.
The statue, dubbed the Tamula konn ("Tamula frog"), has been placed next to the fountain at Tamula beach, the town's main beach, lying on the lake of the same name. It evokes the legendary Northern Frog (Põhjakonn) from the myths compiled by F.R. Kreutzwald (1803-1882), author of national epic the Kalevipoeg.
The plot twist is that a fairy tale has been created, in which the old Northern Frog, an evil character, is replaced by the much more nurturing, Tamula frog, which protects local life and culture.
The statue's creator, Navitrolla, said: "On its tongue is a glass sphere symbolizing a soap bubble, which represents and illustrates the fragility and transience of our Võro language, and how to protect this language that has endured for so long — weathering all storms, troubles, and the shakings of fate. Plus this is the frog that holds the bubble on the bottom of the lake and comes up once a year onto this rock to invite people to test their Võro language."
Despite the rainy weather, locals came to see the new creation on Monday after its unveiling.
To make Kreutzwald's stories more visible at the beach and park near Tamula, a trail themed on his fairy tales is also planned to be built along the lakeside in addition to the frog sculpture.
Võru city development manager Tiina Hallimäe noted: "If you look at the frog, it has spikes on its back which act as a defense, and its back becomes increasingly softer, while at the end of its tail is a kind of frog-egg-stick, which, when waved around, expresses the desire that there be as many brave little Võro children here as there are tadpoles in the pond."
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Editor: Aleksander Krjukov, Andrew Whyte
Source: 'Aktuaalne kaamera'