Description of the attraction
The local history museum in Panevezys was founded in 1925 by the teachers of the forestry college. Previously it was called the Panevezys Museum. The museum has a collection that includes archaeological finds, as well as numerous exhibits on nature, history, medicine, art of the Far East and folk art.
The main collections of the museum include: archaeological, banknote collection, numismatic, book and ethnographic exhibits. In addition, there are collections of negatives and photographs, documents, periodicals, philately, audio and video recordings, sports exhibits and folklore. Basically, there are permanent exhibitions devoted to the history of the region from the beginning of ancient times to the present day. Exhibitions help to learn more about archeology, ethnography, history, flora and fauna of the local area. The best collections are permanent exhibitions in the museum.
The City Museum of Local Lore has several branches: the memorial apartment-museum of Gabriele Pyatkevichaite, the ethnographic estate Smilgiai, the museum of resistance to the Soviet occupation and the old building of Panevezys.
Smilgiai Ethnographic Manor was founded in 1979. The estate is a 19th century house with typical authentic buildings such as living quarters, barn, stable, smithy, barn, prayer room and sauna. The ethnographic manor introduces the typical peasant life, its crafts and professions. The largest number is represented by blacksmith and agricultural tools and inventory.
The Museum of Resistance to Soviet Occupation was opened in 2004. The museum exhibition reflects the resistance in the Panevezys region to the Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1990. In addition, the museum perfectly reflects the activities of the then famous movement "Saudis", fighting for the independence of Lithuania. The most popular themes of museum exhibits are: the first occupation during the Soviet era, guerrilla warfare, expulsion to prisons, emigrants, political prisoners and unarmed oppositions. There is an interesting exposition dedicated to the interior of houses and prisons where prisoners and exiles served their time. Not only photographs are presented, but also memorial things.
The old building of Panevezys is another branch of the local history museum in this city. The very first exposition was opened in the oldest house in the city on January 18, 1925. Exhibitions of folk art were also opened here, which began their work in 1972.
The oldest building is the house where the archives of the local court were kept, which was erected in 1614 by Jeronimas Valavičius. This building was built of stone and had iron doors and iron bars on the windows in order to ensure maximum security. This is the oldest archive building located in Lithuania. After a while, it began to have other functions and was used for a variety of purposes.
The Juozas Zikaras Memorial Museum was opened in 1972 in the home of the famous sculptor Juozas Zikaras. Juozas Zikaras was not only a famous sculptor, but also a Lithuanian professor and head of an art school in the city of Kaunas. Zikaras also worked as a teacher at the Institute of Arts. The collection of the museum represents the entire creative heritage of the sculptor. Juozas Zikaras created a huge number of famous and very expensive works, for example, the statue of "Liberty", which is located in Kaunas. The works of the great artist are also kept here: drawings, sketches, originals and models of sculptures, documents and photographs. This famous person created a bas-relief of Vytautas the Great and other famous personalities.
The memorial apartment-museum of Gabriele Pyatkevičaite-Bite was created in 1999 in the apartment of a famous writer who lived here from 1932 to 1943. The exposition presents the writer's personal belongings: part of the library, furniture, photographs and documents. Gabriele Pyatkevičaite-Bite was a famous writer, literary critic, educator, publicist and historian who glorified the style of realism. She is the author of the famous novel "Ad Astra".
