Mažeikių turizmo ir verslo informacijos centras

"Touch the exhibits with your hands"

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Briefly about the route
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0 m
< 1 min.
Route surface
100% Asphalt

Mažeikiai is one of Samogitian cities in north-western Lithuania, on the Venta River. At first, it was just a small village surrounded by swampy forests. It started growing rapidly in 1874 when the Mintauja (Jelgava) railway branch was constructed, and the designers decided to locate one of the railway stations at the outskirts of Mažeikiai Village. In the 1880s, the first plots of land were distributed for house construction in this swampy and wooded area. The first streets were built not far from the railway. At that time, the majority of buildings were wooden, only a few were built of bricks. Laisvės Street, now located in the Old Town, was the central street and was called Big Street until the end of the First World War. The street, which from the very beginning was surrounded by forests, was not long, but very difficult to drive due to potholes and mud. Therefore, in the year 1895, the street was paved with field stones. They were undressed, rough and irregular in shape, but arranged in a skilful way. Unfortunately, when asphalting the current Laisvės Street, the old pavement having the historical value was not preserved.

              Today, the stones in Mažeikiai City have another purpose – they have become works of art. Most of them are located on the central street and streets branching from it. These streets still “remember” the road surface, which Samogitians used to call “the devil’s pavement”. There are still plenty of stones of various sizes and shapes in the fields – they keep popping up like mushrooms from the ground. When creating monuments, busts or sculptures in the city, the boulders from Mažeikiai District are used.

              The route starts on Laisvės Street from Mažeikiai Gymnasium named after Merkelis Račkauskas. In the autumn of 1983, the first artistic monument, created by a professional sculptor, was built near this Gymnasium. This is one of the six works made during the republican symposium held in Seda Town. When planning the route in Mažeikiai Old Town, objects of different shapes, heights and sizes, located not far from each other, were selected. On this route, sculptures and monuments prevail. Three selected works of professional sculptor Paulius Daujotas attract special attention due to harmonious combination of stone and metal. All the objects of this route are works of nature, which thank to human hands, began “speaking”, acquired a new form and a new meaning.

Route marking

1. Sculpture “To the World of Knowledge”

Link to object: “To the World of Knowledge”

 

2. Sculpture “Marker”

Sculpture “Marker”

Link to object: Sculpture “Marker”

 

3. Sculpture “Bird”

Sculpture “Bird”

Link to object: Sculpture “Bird”

 

4. Monument “To Liberty of Speech”

Monument “To Liberty of Speech”

Link to object: Monument “To Liberty of Speech”

 

5. Sculpture “The First School”

Sculpture “The First School”

Link to object: Sculpture “The First School”

 

6. Exposition “Ornaments in Stone”

Exposition “Ornaments in Stone”

Link to object: Exposition “Ornaments in Stone”

 

7. Sculpture “Union-2014” or “Marriage”

Sculpture “Union-2014” or “Marriage”

Link to object: Sculpture “Union-2014” or “Marriage”

 

8. Monument to Vladas Burba

Monument to Vladas Burba

Link to object: Monument to Vladas Burba

 

9. Memorial Stone to the Children’s Music School

Memorial Stone to the Children’s Music School

Link to object: Memorial Stone to the Children’s Music School

 

10. Sculpture to Antanas Vienažindys

10. Sculpture to Antanas Vienažindys

Link to object: Sculpture to Antanas Vienažindys

 

11.    Monument to Šatrijos Ragana

Monument to Šatrijos Ragana

Link to object: Monument to Šatrijos Ragana

 

12. Monument to Juozas Vaičkus 

Monument to Juozas Vaičkus

Link to object: Monument to Juozas Vaičkus

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It is an interactive, innovative, modern technology-based learning and cultural awareness tool for Lithuanian and foreign visitors to get to know important and unique cultural heritage objects and famous people in our country