Description of the attraction
The Pažaislis ensemble is located in the Kaunas forest, on the picturesque bank of the Neman River. It is a masterpiece of mature baroque architecture in Europe.
The Pažaislis complex was built as a monastery of Kamaldulov hermits, founded in 1667 by the Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Christopher Sigmund Pat. The architects were D. B. Frediani, P. Putini and K. Putini. The church was consecrated in 1712 and named after the Visit of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The Pažaislis ensemble is clearly planned according to the principle of axial symmetry. The axis of the composition crosses the majestic arched gate for the entrance, the alley, the elongated one-story building of the Gostiny Dvor (forestorium) with projections and a central two-story gateway zone, a wide courtyard, on the sides of which there are two service buildings, a temple with two buildings of monasteries, with galleries and closed courtyards, a garden with houses of monks (eremitorium) and a three-tiered tower.
At the beginning of the 18th century, during the Northern War, and in the following years (the Patriotic War of 1812), the Pažaislis complex was almost destroyed. After the national uprising in Lithuania and Poland was defeated in 1831, the Kamaldulov monastery was closed, and all its buildings and property were transferred to the Old Believer monastery founded here. At that time, seven marble altars were destroyed in the church, statues were destroyed, frescoes were partially rewritten or whitewashed, some of the buildings were re-equipped.
The basis of the composition of the Pažaislis ensemble is the church, which is 30 meters wide and 49 meters high (without a cross). It is a two-towered, hexagonal building covered with a colorful hexagonal dome with a lantern. The interior decoration of the temple is characterized by originality, and the decoration is characterized by exceptionally high artistic qualities.
The entrance area, the space of the church, the presbytery, covered with a blank dome, and the choir are directed along the longitudinal axis, while the four chapels, the sacristy and the chapter hall are located symmetrically on the sides. The feeling of high spirits and joy is created by the emphasized verticality of the interior decoration, marble wall decoration in black and pink colors, numerous frescoes and decorative stucco moldings using the stucco technique and a harmonious combination of all architectural elements. Particularly noteworthy are the bas-reliefs created by the sculptor I. Merli, and the expressive frescoes of the Florentine painter KMA Palloni "Death of St. Christopher", "Adoration of the Magi", "Romuald's Dream", "Assumption of the Virgin Mary". From the frescoes and stucco moldings made in the Gostiny Dvor, also after 1831, little has survived to this day.
In 1921, the abandoned Pažaislis Monastery was handed over by the Lithuanian authorities to the sisters of the St. Casimir Congregation, who arrived from Chicago.
The Pazaislis Monastery was known not only for the pious way of life of the Kamalduls and for its architecture, but also for the image of the Most Holy Mother of God with the Child, belonging to the brush of an unknown artist. This image was popularly called the Camaldole image of the Virgin Mary. During the Soviet period, the icon was moved to the Kaunas Basilica, and in 2000 it was solemnly returned to Pažaislis.
Now the monastery is being restored. Several nuns of the congregation named after St. Casimir live in it. At the same time, it can be visited with a guided tour. The Pažaislis Music Festival is organized here every year.
The extraordinary harmony and expressiveness of the composition of the Pažaislis ensemble make it one of the heights of the architectural era of the mature baroque in Europe.
