Description of the attraction
For more than three hundred years, the Lithuanian family Radvilov was considered the most influential, powerful and richest family. The following personalities belonged to the Radvil family: Cardinal Jurgis Radviga, the great queen Barbora Radvilaite, several bishops, 37 governors who ruled the largest and most powerful territories, as well as 22 officials with special respect and honor. For 166 years, members of this dynasty were in the position of the governor of the city of Vilnius. Makalojus Radviga the Red headed the Lithuanian delegation at the Lublin Diet.
It is thanks to the merits of this family that the palace of the Radvil family is the most important and most beautiful sight of the city of Vilnius. A huge number of tourists from all over the world come to the city to see the palace with their own eyes.
During the 16-17 centuries, the Radvil family had more than ten palaces - and this is only in Vilnius. In the place where the palace is now located, there was previously a palace building that belonged to the great Radvil family. The construction of the new palace was carried out in the Palazzo style, namely in the image and likeness of the Parisian Luxembourg Palace.
The Radvila Palace was built in the 17th century in the Renaissance style by the hetman of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Jonušas Radvila. The palace was built on three floors according to the sketches of the architect Ulrich. A two-story gallery with a variety of rich decorations found its place in it. This palace was considered the most beautiful in Vilnius until the 18th century.
But time passes, and as a result of frequent wars and fires during the 18-19 centuries, the palace building was almost completely destroyed. Everything that remained of the Radvila Palace was donated to the Vilnius Charitable Society.
In 1967, the reconstruction of the palace building began for its complete restoration, but the building has not been brought into its proper form even at the present time.
But still, part of the palace of the great family survived. In 1990, a branch of the Lithuanian Art Museum began its work in the restored and renovated part of the building. The museum hosts permanent exhibitions that highlight the subtle development of Western European art from the early 16th century to the present day.
The collection of the museum contains the richest collection of all major schools of painting, which gives an idea of the history of the outstanding development of European art, which dates back to the Italian Renaissance. Basically, the main part of the collection is made up of private collections, which were donated to the Lithuanian art society at the beginning of the 20th century.
After the end of World War II, the museum collection increased significantly due to the confiscation of paintings that belonged to private individuals, as well as the church, by order of the Soviet government. The most important and outstanding values of the collection are paintings by the greatest masters of their craft such as: Salvador Rosa, Goya, Jacob Van Reisdale, Hobbem Jacob, as well as engravings by Dürer, Piranesi, Rembrandt.
The gallery has several works by legendary masters and the Russian school - Roerich, Levitan, Repin and other talented personalities. The collection of works by little-known artists from Europe of the 16-19 centuries is of considerable interest. It is this art that allows us to look differently at the historical development of art in Western Europe.
In one room there is an exhibition dedicated to the former owners of the palace - the famous aristocratic Radvil family. This exhibition includes 165 portraits of the entire noble Radvil family. The portraits were engraved by Hirs Leibowitz, who was known as a self-taught master.
