In search of the guardian of Vilnius

The building was designed in 1928 by Stefan Narębski, who had just arrived in Vilnius upon being appointed as the city’s chief architect. It was to be a spacious and modern school for 500 boys and 500 girls. It was called the Lucjan Żeligowski School for Boys and the Władysław Syrokomla School for Girls. 

The portals of both schools were decorated with figures of St Christopher and the date of completion was 1930.To harmonise the building with its surroundings, Stefan Narębski chose ornamental details that echoed the nearby Sapieha Palace.

After the Second World War, the name of the school changed several times, and since 1972 the school, better known as the 18th secondary school, was where Dalia Ibelhauptaitė, Andrius Mamontovas, and Oskaras Koršunovas once attended. Later, it was called Antakalnis Secondary School, and is now ‘Antakalnio Gimnazija’.

In 1675, the Pac family funded the construction of a Baroque church with the famous ambiguous inscription betraying its founders: ‘Regina Pacis funda nos in pace‘ (‘Queen of Peace, protect us in peace’).

The interior of the church is impressive. Giovanni Pietro Perti and Giovanni Maria Galli decorated it with more than 2,000 stucco sculptures. Among them, right next to the entrance, we can easily find the oldest sculpture of St. Christopher in Vilnius.

The power station was built in 1901-1902, and in 1903, 181 light bulbs lit up the streets of Vilnius.

In 1944, the retreating Germans blew up the plant before the equipment could be dismantled and transported away. Rebuilding took a year and a half, lasting until December 1946. With the construction of the Elektrėnai power plant, the old Vilnius power plant lost its importance and switched to supplying heat to the city.

The power station is decorated with Bolesław Bałzukiewicz’s sculpture ‘Elektra’, which was restored in 1995 by the sculptor Petras Mazūras, and also depicts three coats-of-arms of Vilnius with St. Christopher.

The Bernardines were invited to Lithuania by Casimir IV Jagiełłon in the middle of the 15th  century. The construction of the Bernardine Church coincides with the construction of the city wall, which is why the church takes on the features of a defensive fortress. From the direction of the Academy of Arts, you can also see the firing ports in the roof of the church. The church is Gothic, but its pediment is Baroque, having been rebuilt after the wars of the mid-17th century. 

As you enter the church, you will see a 6-metre fresco of St. Christopher on your left. It’s hard to believe, but it was once covered with 12 layers of paint. Although the fresco is in a rather poor state of decay, you can still recognise the features of St. Christopher.

The Zynda family (first the father Leon, then the son Bolesław took over the business) opened the ‘St. Vojtech’ bookshop in this building in 1922. The bookshop in Vilnius operated as a branch of the Poznan Bookstore. In 1936, the owners decorated the walls of the bookshop with sgraffito. The building was restored in 1972 and again in 2004. The bookshop is decorated with many different symbols: an owl, a burning torch, a book, as well as sun and moon compositions. One of the panels also features St. Christopher.

Designed by Laurynas Gucevičius and reconstructed by Stefan Narębski in the interwar period, the Town Hall is a veritable show of ubiquitous St. Christophers. The most visible large heraldic shield on the front of the Town Hall was added in 2003. The door handles with images of St. Christopher were designed by Stefan Narębski during the interwar period. Note how shiny it is, bearing testament to how frequently the door has been opened. We can also find the coat of arms of Vilnius with St. Christopher above the central door and on the flags of Vilnius. And if you walk around the Town Hall, you will also find St. Christopher above the door at the back with the date of the reconstruction – 1938. 

In the 16th century, it was the home of Russian merchants. In the early 20th century, Konstantin Koroyedov, an architect and engineer from Russia, converted the building into a city hall and ‘Grand Hotel’. The city hall is the most mature building of this Russian architect in Vilnius, designed for elite social gatherings and to host the city’s most distinguished guests. The façade of the building was therefore designed to look luxurious and solid. In the early 20th century, the palatial building also became an important focal point of the national revival movement: after the ban on the Lithuanian language was lifted in 1904, P. Vileišis’ first Lithuanian bookshop was established here; the Great Vilnius Seimas was convened on 4 and 5 December 1905 – for the first time, it raised the demand for political autonomy for Lithuania. A year later, on 6 November 1906, the first Lithuanian national opera, ‘Birutė’ by Mikas Petrauskas, premiered here.

If you raise your eyes to the building’s pediment – once decorated with the Tsarist coat of arms of Vilnius Governorate, you will now see the coat of arms of Vilnius incorporating the image of St. Christopher.

Next to one of the oldest churches in Vilnius is a sculpture of St. Christopher by Antanas Kmieliauskas commissioned in 1957 by the parish priest of St. Nicholas Church, Česlovas Krivaitis. The sculpture was to be dedicated to the memory of Kristupas Čibiras (a priest who fought for the Lithuanian identity between the wars). Kmieliauskas studied painting, so this was his first stone sculpture. During the Soviet era, it was unforgivable to create sacred sculptures, so Kmieliauskas’ work caused him to be expelled from the Artists’ Union. Even though this sculpture cost him his career, Kmieliauskas always stressed that he never regretted it. In 2016, he received the St. Christopher Award.

Władysław Umiastowski and his wife Janina used to organise parties and cultural events in the palace in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as hosting the intellectuals’ club and various societies. After the Count’s death, Janina was famous for her charitable activities.

In 1930, after the reconstruction of the palace, a niche was built in the corner of the building and a statue of St. Christopher was placed there. The sculpture disappeared after the war and the niche was empty for some time. In 1973, a sculpture by Stanislovas Kuzma entitled ‘The Guard of the City Gates’ appeared in the niche. It was the artist’s diploma work for the 650th anniversary of the first mention of Vilnius. Before starting the work, the sculptor was friends with the famous Lithuanian graphic artist Rimtautas Gibavičius, so he gave the sculpture his friend’s facial features, which he thought were similar to those of a knight. In Soviet times, the sculpture was made of wood. It was cast in copper when Lithuania regained its independence, and the Gediminas Pillars were added.

Designed by architect Arūnas Eduardas Paslaitis, the building was decorated in 1996 with a work by the sculptor Kazimieras Kisielis. The huge, stainless steel St. Christopher stands with his trousers rolled up, looking as if he is about to descend onto Gediminas Avenue.