{"id":15575,"date":"2026-04-29T07:50:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T07:50:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/?page_id=15575"},"modified":"2026-04-29T07:54:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T07:54:17","slug":"newsletter-collections-highlights3","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/","title":{"rendered":"Newsletter- Collections highlights3"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
\n
\n \n Vabamu Museum <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n NoVa <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n Global Conversations <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

\n Bringing Home Along: The Mae Family Donation to Vabamu\u2019s Collection <\/h2>\n
\n

In February 2026, <\/span>Vabamu<\/span> welcomed Estonian diaspora filmmakers Reet and Toomas Mae, whose work focuses on preserving the memories of Estonians living abroad. During their visit, <\/span>Vabamu<\/span> hosted a screening of their short films, which explore stories of displacement, Soviet occupation, and the experiences of refugee communities. The evening led to another meaningful contribution to <\/span>Vabamu\u2019s<\/span> collection<\/span>–<\/span> the Mae family donated a group of objects that tell the story of their own family history.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n\n

\n
\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Reet and Toomas Mae\u2019s parents fled Estonia during the Great Escape of 1944, when tens of thousands of Estonians were forced to make life-changing decisions in a matter of moments as Soviet forces advanced. Like many families, that decision shaped generations to come. Reet and her sister Mari were born in Sweden, while Toomas was later born in Canada. Over the past decade, the siblings have worked together to collect and preserve diaspora stories so that these memories are not lost.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Among the donated objects is a set of children\u2019s folk costumes that reflects how Estonian cultural traditions were kept alive far from home. Reet Mae described the donation in her own words: \u201cI thought Vabamu would be the best home for these items because they beautifully show how we tried to preserve our homeland while living abroad.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The donation includes a knitted children\u2019s skirt, possibly made by Endla Komi; a striped skirt sewn by Reet\u2019s mother and worn by Reet as a child; and a cotton children\u2019s blouse made by Reet herself at a time when linen fabric was difficult to obtain. Instead of traditional embroidery, she hand-painted decorative patterns onto the blouse using textile paints. The collection also includes an apron and a small six-string folk zither\/kannel, later used by Reet\u2019s daughter Leida when she was around five or six years old learning to play.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

These objects reflect creativity, resilience, and a deep desire to maintain a connection to Estonia. When traditional materials were unavailable, families found new ways to continue cultural practices- what mattered most was ensuring that traditions lived on.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Mae family\u2019s donation reminds us that history is preserved not only through official documents or major historical events, but also through hand-sewn clothing, small musical instruments, and the stories families carry across generations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n\n\n

\n
\n

Images of the items<\/h2>\n
\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n \"\" <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n \n <\/div>\n
\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":15584,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-15575","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nNewsletter- Collections highlights3 - Vabamu<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Newsletter- Collections highlights3 - Vabamu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Vabamu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-29T07:54:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"956\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/\",\"name\":\"Newsletter- Collections highlights3 - Vabamu\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-29T07:50:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-29T07:54:17+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":956},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Newsletter- Collections highlights3\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Vabamu\",\"description\":\"Vabamu Website\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vabamu.ee\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Newsletter- Collections highlights3 - Vabamu","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Newsletter- Collections highlights3 - Vabamu","og_url":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/","og_site_name":"Vabamu","article_modified_time":"2026-04-29T07:54:17+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":956,"url":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/","url":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/","name":"Newsletter- Collections highlights3 - Vabamu","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg","datePublished":"2026-04-29T07:50:37+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-29T07:54:17+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/VBM_23066TV_2.jpg","width":1024,"height":956},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/newsletter-collections-highlights3\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Newsletter- Collections highlights3"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/","name":"Vabamu","description":"Vabamu Website","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/15575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15575"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/15575\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vabamu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}