Holy Cross Church, Kaunas ( lt, Šv. Kryžiaus (Karmelitų) bažnyčia) is located in the
Centre
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
elderate of
Kaunas
Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...
,
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
.
The monks of the Order of
Carmelites
, image =
, caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites
, abbreviation = OCarm
, formation = Late 12th century
, founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel
, founding_location = Mount Car ...
bought several plots of land for the monastery in Kaunas near the
Nemunas
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
river in 1706. Some years earlier, the new church was sanctified nearby in 1685. It was consecrated in 1700. The church was built in the late baroque style. It is a two tower building of
Latin cross
A Latin cross or ''crux immissa'' is a type of cross in which the vertical beam sticks above the crossbeam, with the three upper arms either equally long or with the vertical topmost arm shorter than the two horizontal arms, and always with a mu ...
shape. The painting in the main dome represents the prophet
Elijah
Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Books of ...
. It was created in the second half of the 18th century. After the spread of
cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
epidemic,
Tsarist Russian government established the hospital on the first floor of the monastery in 1831. The church and the monastery were closed in 1845 and since when were used as a store house for
cart
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people.
It is different from the flatbed tr ...
s and
harness
A harness is a looped restraint or support. Specifically, it may refer to one of the following harness types:
* Bondage harness
* Child harness
* Climbing harness
* Dog harness
* Pet harness
* Five-point harness
* Horse harness
* Parrot harness
* ...
. At the same time the interior of the church was vandalized. The St. Cross Church of Kaunas was returned to the believers only in 1881. During the renovation from 1885 till 1898, five new
sanctuaries
A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sa ...
were built, the
pulpit
A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...
, the organ, as well as three new bells were installed.
Tyrolean artist John Kerle decorated the vaults of the church with the seventeen compositions in 1898. The church was renovated once more in 1925–1934.
The Holy Cross Church of Kaunas was included into the Registry of Immovable Cultural Heritage Sites of the Republic of Lithuania in 1996.
The Registry of Immovable Cultural Heritage Sites: Unique object code: 1128. Retrieved on 2 March 2011
References
External links
Kaunas Church of the Holy Cross website
Roman Catholic churches in Kaunas
Roman Catholic churches in Lithuania
Baroque architecture in Lithuania
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