Vilnius, Lithuania
Aug 1, 2025
In the not-too-distant past (mid-14th century CE) a wooden fortress on a small hill in the center of present day Vilnius was abandoned and a fortified brick castle built on the plain below the hill. It was the residence of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania, related to the Polish kingdom and kings. The 16th century saw this transformed into a larger, more opulent Renaissance-style residence which was later remodeled in the Baroque style. The 17th century war with Moscow saw this destroyed almost totally, never to be rebuilt or host royalty again. It was only in 1987, that the fervent desire to distance itself from Soviet influence spurred Lithuania to rebuild this palace. A huge undertaking that was completed just in 2018. A brand new “old” palace you might call it. And not really that old to begin with!
It is now a museum with exhibits spanning the history of Lithuania, so said the pamphlets. I needed no second urging.
The oldest exhibits are three metal pieces – a gold and an alloy neck piece from the 3rd– 4th century CE and wheel from the 1st millennium CE. They appear to be rudimentary and the few remnants of pottery basic. I cannot help thinking of other civilizations – Georgian, Armenian and Turkish spring to mind. Each had these skills honed to a fine art many millennia before! How is it that there was no influence of these civilizations despite being relatively close geographically? There are no answers here. Nor is there any pertinent information on what I find the single most intriguing item here: a single piece with writing on it. Peer as I might, I can relate it to nothing that I have seen before.
Much of this floor is devoted to the remains of the older brick structure. I find it interesting that they used wooden conduits for water and sewage and even storage instead of brick or stone. Wood is also used for stakes and interlocking logs for walls. It can hardly be because the material is stronger or longer lasting; it must be that wood was simply more plentiful and easier to build with. But none of the signage provides a clue.
On the next floor, I am in the newer palace and have a sense of déjà vu. It is almost a carbon copy of the Wawel Castle I saw in Krakow! The same railroad style rooms, the same cavernous halls, the same pieces of wood furniture. I suppose it is not surprising since Lithuania was a part of the Polish kingdom and this merely a Duchy although the plentiful signage strives a tad too hard to paint a sense of separate identity. One of the cavernous halls has heraldic emblems painted at the vertices – now that is interestingly different!
Only one of the rooms has a beautifully re-created coffered ceiling. Here and in the other two rooms there are a couple of tapestries, but the paintings are all copies.
Oh, but there are those stoves at the corner of the rooms! Not only that, this museum has quite a collection of stove tiles. They are showcased as they evolved in gradually increasing degree of complexity. There are even a pair of models.
It seems that in the 16th century stove tiles were wildly popular in this part of the world. They had twin functions: an expression of artistic creativity and a much-needed practicality of providing warmth. And quickly became a status symbol. In fact, a lot of them were commissioned from the Netherlands and Portugal. Ha! I smile to myself. I had wondered about the possible connection.
ITCHY FEET TRAVELS 