Former convent of Franciscan-Bernardine nuns / Vilniaus buves Bernardinu (Klarisiu) vienuolynas (Vilnius)
N 54° 40.962 E 025° 17.506
35U E 389871 N 6060823
Complex of former convent of Franciscan-Bernardine nuns with Church of of St. Michael the Archangel (Šv. Arkangelo Mykolo bažnycia ir bernardiniu vienuolynas) houses nowadays Church Heritage Museum.
Waymark Code: WMNKMN
Location: Lithuania
Date Posted: 03/30/2015
Views: 40
Complex of former convent of Franciscan-Bernardine nuns with Church of of St. Michael the Archangel (Šv. Arkangelo Mykolo bažnycia ir bernardiniu vienuolynas), is rare example of Renaissance ecclesiastic architecture in Lithuania, houses nowadays Church Heritage Museum.
The Church of St. Michael the Archangel was built by the Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Leonas Sapiega between 1599-1629 for a convent of Franciscan-Bernandine nuns, and also to serve as a family mausoleum. The construction lasted for thirty years, and the consecration ceremony took place on September 8, 1629. During the war with Moscow the Convent was burned and plundered by Cossacks, however, was restored between 1663 and 1373. The separate Baroque church's bell tower was built in the 18th century. In tsarist times the Church was closed down, but returned to the Sapiega family in 1903 and restored through their efforts. Later the Church was repaired once again.
The Renaissance Franciscan-Bernardine most interesting part is the south eastern block with massive counterforts, linked by the brick wall from beneath. Before the street was laid, the territory of the Monastery was stretched down to the Vilnia River.
In 1956 the Church opened as the Museum of Architecture. The interior of the Church is various and of great interest. The early 17th-century marble altar and a few 17th-century tombstones have survived. The one commemorating Leonas Sapiega and his two wives is the largest memorial in Lithuania. In 2009 the Church opened as the Church Heritage Museum (Bažnytinio paveldo muziejus).