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Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Scapular in Druskininkai

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The Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Scapular in Druskininkai was built on the site of an old chapel, which may have been initiated by the architect of the Grodno Governorate. The new church building, started in 1912, was completed only in 1931 and has remained unchanged since. Its architecture is in the neo-Gothic style, featuring a red brick facade and large pointed windows. The church is renowned for its art monuments, stained glass windows, and its strong connection with important figures, such as M. K. Čiurlionis' father and priest Juozas Vaičiūnas.

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Religious Heritage
Druskininkai

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54.017222, 23.974728

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The Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Scapular was built on the site of an old brick chapel. The chapel, constructed between 1842 and 1844, was in neo-Gothic forms, with a gabled roof and a small tower, though the author of this construction remains unknown. Later, in 1909, it was decided to build a new, larger, and more spacious church, and the project was designed by Warsaw architect Stefan Szyller. Construction began in 1912, but due to World War I, it was halted, and the church was completed only in 1931. The church is designed in the neo-Gothic style, influenced by Dutch, Pomeranian, and Lithuanian Gothic. It is built of red bricks, with tall gable roofs covered in tiles. The main facade, unusually facing north, features a three-tiered tower with a pointed arch portal. The side facades have large pointed windows and buttresses. Inside, the church has two rows of columns with ribbed vaults, and the nave is covered

with star and ribbed vaults. The altar, like other fixtures of this type, is neo-Gothic, located in a curved X-shaped niche. The church houses 11 art monuments, including paintings depicting the Virgin Mary, St. John, and other saints, as well as sculptures such as the Crucified Christ. The stained glass windows are particularly notable, including a window by F. Valaitis depicting Mary and works from the 19th century. The church is also associated with significant figures in Lithuanian history. Here, before his death, one of the leaders of the 1863 uprising, Liudvikas Narbutas, married. The church was also a key site in the resistance against Tsarism, and in 1906, M. K. Čiurlionis' father served as the organist. In the post-war period, the church became a cultural hub, frequently visited by notable people such as linguist Juozas Balčikonis, sculptor Rapolas Jakimavičius, and other prominent Lithuanian intellectuals.

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