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Cathedral Square, Vilnius

History of VilniusNational squaresSquares in Vilnius
Vilnius Cathedral Exterior 2, Vilnius, Lithuania Diliff
Vilnius Cathedral Exterior 2, Vilnius, Lithuania Diliff

The Cathedral Square in Vilnius (Lithuanian: Katedros aikštė) is the main square of the Vilnius Old Town, right in front of the neo-classical Vilnius Cathedral. It is a key location in city's public life, situated as it is at the crossing of the city's main streets and reflecting the city's diversity. Regularly held at this site are fairs and gatherings of townspeople, military parades, religious and official public events, attractions and large concerts, New Year’s salutes and exhibitions. It is not merely the most lively and important location in the city, but is also one of the most significant and widely known symbols of Lithuania.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Cathedral Square, Vilnius (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Cathedral Square, Vilnius
Cathedral Square, Vilnius Old Town

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Wikipedia: Cathedral Square, VilniusContinue reading on Wikipedia

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Latitude Longitude
N 54.685277777778 ° E 25.2875 °
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Vilniaus Šv. Stanislovo ir Šv. Vladislovo arkikatedra bazilika (Vilniaus katedra)

Cathedral Square 2
01143 Vilnius, Old Town
Vilnius County, Lithuania
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Vilnius Cathedral Exterior 2, Vilnius, Lithuania Diliff
Vilnius Cathedral Exterior 2, Vilnius, Lithuania Diliff
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Vilnius Cathedral
Vilnius Cathedral

The Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus and St Ladislaus of Vilnius (also known as Vilnius Cathedral; Lithuanian: Vilniaus Šv. Stanislovo ir Šv. Vladislovo arkikatedra bazilika; Polish: Bazylika archikatedralna św. Stanisława Biskupa i św. Władysława, historical: Kościół Katedralny św. Stanisława) is the main Catholic cathedral in Lithuania. It is situated in Vilnius Old Town, just off Cathedral Square. Dedicated to the Christian saints Stanislaus and Ladislaus, the church is the heart of Catholic spiritual life in Lithuania. The coronations of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania took place within its confines. Inside its crypts and catacombs are buried many famous people from Lithuanian and Polish history including Vytautas (1430), his wife Anna (1418), his brother Sigismund (Žygimantas) (1440), his cousin Švitrigaila (1452), Saint Casimir (1484), Alexander Jagiellon (1506), and two wives of Sigismund II Augustus: Elisabeth of Austria (1545) and Barbara Radziwiłł (1551). The heart of the Polish king and Grand Duke of Lithuania Władysław IV Vasa was buried there upon his death, although the rest of his body is buried at the Wawel Cathedral in Kraków. Inside, there are more than forty works of art dating from the 16th through 19th centuries, including frescoes and paintings of various sizes. During the restoration of the cathedral, the altars of a presumed pagan temple and the original floor, laid during the reign of King Mindaugas, were uncovered. In addition, the remains of the cathedral built in 1387 were also located. A fresco dating from the end of the 14th century, the oldest known fresco in Lithuania, was found on the wall of one of the cathedral's underground chapels. During the Soviet occupation, the cathedral was converted into a warehouse. Masses were celebrated again starting in 1988, although the cathedral was still officially called The Gallery of Images at that time. In 1989, its status as a cathedral was restored.

Museum of Antiquities in Vilnius
Museum of Antiquities in Vilnius

The Museum of Antiquities (Lithuanian: Senienų muziejus, Polish: Muzeum Starożytności) in Vilnius (Vilna, Wilno) was a museum of archaeology and history established by Count Eustachy Tyszkiewicz in 1855 at the premises of the closed Vilnius University. It was the first public museum in the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania and is considered a predecessor of the National Museum of Lithuania even though only a handful of items from the Museum of Antiquities ended up at the National Museum. Together with the Archaeological Commission which functioned as a de facto learned society, the museum was the most prominent cultural and scientific institution in all of Lithuania and displayed many historical items that reminded of the old Grand Duchy and served romantic nationalism of Lithuanian nobles at the time when Lithuania was part of the Russian Empire. The museum collections rapidly grew to over 67,000 items in 1865 by absorbing large collections of minerals and zoological specimens from the closed Vilnius University, libraries of various closed Catholic churches and monasteries, and various donations from local nobles. The museum was nationalized and reorganized after the failed Uprising of 1863, removing almost all items related to the former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth to the Rumyantsev Museum in Moscow. The museum became a division of the newly established Vilnius Public Library. The reformed library and museum served to support the official Russification policies and displayed many items related to the Russian Empire and the Eastern Orthodox Church. After losing the last significant cultural center that supported the culture of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vilnius was becoming a Russian provincial city and losing its leading role in Polish–Lithuanian cultural life. The museum continued to operate until World War I when its most significant holdings were evacuated to the Rumyantsev Museum. The handful of items that remained in Vilnius and were not lost during the wars are held by various museums, including the National Museum of Lithuania, the Lithuanian Art Museum, and the Geology and Zoology Museums of Vilnius University.