The stucco work
White figures covering dome and walls.
Michal Gorski — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Suicasmo — CC BY-SA 4.0 · August Dominus — CC0 · Šarūnas Burdulis — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Michal Gorski — CC BY-SA 3.0
The Church of St Peter and St Paul is a Roman Catholic church in the Antakalnis district of Vilnius, considered a masterpiece of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Baroque. Its twin towers look elegant from outside, but its fame lies within, where some 2,000 stucco figures fill the walls in a way unique in Europe. An earlier wooden church on the site burned in 1594 and was rebuilt, then was destroyed during the wars with Russia of 1655 to 1661. The present church was commissioned by Grand Hetman Michał Kazimierz Pac, who is said to have hidden in its ruins in 1662 and escaped mutinous soldiers, a story repeated in the sources. Work started on 29 June 1668 under Jan Zaor of Kraków and was finished in 1676 by Giovanni Battista Frediani. Pac brought in the Italian masters Giovanni Pietro Perti and Giovanni Maria Galli for the decoration. From outside you see a white and yellow front between two towers with red domes, wooded hills behind it, an ornate gate and a wall around the yard. Inside, bright white stucco covers the dome and walls with a wide range of scenes and figures, an experience to take in quietly. The church lies about 1.5 km from Vilnius Cathedral in a straight line and is easy to reach on foot. It is a working church, so dress modestly and keep your voice down, avoid visiting during mass and do not use flash.
White figures covering dome and walls.
A front between two red-domed towers.
An entrance to the yard before the church.
Antakalnio g. 1, Vilnius, Lithuania
The Three Crosses MonumentThree white crosses on a green hill, visible from everywhere in Vilnius: the mon12 minutes walk4.8
Energy and Technology MuseumA museum in Vilnius's first power station, built in 1903 and running until 1998,16 minutes walk4.7
Gediminas' TowerAll that survives of Vilnius's Upper Castle, and the nation's emblem: the octago16 minutes walk4.8
Tibet SquareA small square near the Užupis district of Vilnius, formally dedicated to Tibet 16 minutes walk4.6
Palace of the Grand Dukes of LithuaniaA palace rebuilt from nothing to return a nation to its history: this was the se18 minutes walk4.8We found no fee, but it is a working church, so avoid mass times.
About 1.5 km from the cathedral in a straight line, an easy walk.