Celebrating the launch of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Seimas Exhibition Gallery hosted the opening of the exhibition In the United Europe featuring original historical documents, books, photographs and other exhibits that show the links between Lithuania and Europe as well as key moments in the development of the state, starting with the first mention of Lithuania in written sources in 1009 and ending with Lithuania’s accession to the European Union in 2004. The introduction to the exhibition was made by Vydas Gedvilas, Speaker of the Seimas, and Dr Rimantas Miknys, Director of the Lithuanian Institute of History.

Vydas Gedvilas, Speaker of the Seimas, emphasised that the first Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the EU is a huge responsibility; however, it is, first and foremost, an opportunity to introduce ourselves, to show our capacity and to boast of what we stand out among other European family members.

As stated by the Speaker of the Seimas, the “exhibition is exceptional as it sends a message to Europe that Lithuania has been establishing and strengthening relations with Europe and developing cooperation in various fields since a long time ago. With the help of historians, the originals of unique and particularly valuable science- and knowledge-wise documents, books and other exhibits have been selected thanks to the benevolent agreement of the Lithuanian establishments responsible for preserving the historical memory of Lithuania to display them for the participants and guests of the parliamentary dimension events to be held in the Seimas during the Lithuanian Presidency“.

Mr Gedvilas also pointed out that visitors of the exhibition would be able to see a number of exhibits having particular importance to the development of our statehood. “The very fact that every document displayed here is the original speaks for itself. Just think of the possibility to see one of the most significant documents of our state, the Act of the Independence of 11 March, with your own eyes. Everyone knows about it, but only a few have seen it,” stressed the Speaker of the Seimas.

The translation of Postilla by Mikalojus Daukša is the largest in volume (650 p.) and the most significant printed text of the 16th century in Lithuanian, a written monument to the Lithuanian language. It played a major role in the creation of written and spoken standard Lithuanian in the Grand Duchy. Vilnius University Library

Dr Rimantas Miknys, Director of the Lithuanian Institute of History and co-organiser of the exhibition, said in his address that the exhibition In the United Europe had a purpose to provide knowledge of European identity and to present certain historical experiences of the Lithuanian society.

The historian observed that the process of European integration of Lithuania encountered major difficulties in the run of history. Therefore, there were continuous efforts to preserve the statehood, attempts to find balance between various geopolitical centres of power and several attempts to brutally deprive our country of European culture and political values.

“That is why before our accession to the EU, public political discourse was often filled with metaphors of “returning to Europe” and “going to Europe”. That is why when organising the exhibition we raised the questions: what was our past, what impact it had on us and how we see our future. We hope that visitors of the exhibition will find certain answers to those questions and those answers will contribute to the development of the project of the common European future,“ Director of the Lithuanian Institute of History, explains the idea behind the exhibition.

One of the exhibits on display is the privilege granted by Sigismund Augustus in 1563, which made the rights of the Lithuanian Catholic and Orthodox people equal. Manuscript Department, Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania

The exhibition In the United Europe has been arranged in cooperation with Dr Rimantas Miknys, Prof. Zigmantas Kiaupa and Dr Algimantas Kasparavičius, historians at the Lithuanian Institute of History. The exhibition features historical documents from the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania, the Wroblewski Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences, Vilnius University Library, the National Museum of Lithuania, the M. K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art, the Archive of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, the Lithuanian State Central Archives, the Lithuanian State Historical Archives, the Lithuanian State Modern Archives, and the Lithuanian news agency ELTA.

 

Nerijus Vėta, Public Relations Unit, tel. +370 5 239 6208, e-mail: [email protected]