The Butrimonys ethnographic museum | Virtual tour

It is the only one in Lithuania, an urban monument, reflected in the coat of arms of the town, approved by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Lithuania on 22 August 2001. The square symbolically united the wishes of the three peoples who lived here - Tatars, Lithuanians and Jews. The prehistory of Butrimonys dates back to the times of Vytautas the Great (14th-15th centuries), when the Tatars settled here. The town was founded at the crossroads of three roads: from Vilnius to Alytus and Punia, and the square that was formed became a market place. Around the area, plots of land were distributed to traders and craftsmen. The square was renovated in 2019. It features playgrounds, swings, outdoor musical instruments, and a dynamic whirlpool accented by an acrylic flask-shaped fountain. In 2022, an interactive sculpture was unveiled, dedicated to the Jewish-born Sendai Valvrojenski (later Berenson-Abbott), the first female basketball promoter in Butrimonys. The symbols of the old square are a stone with the inscription "For those who fought for Lithuanian Independence", a wooden sculpture "Lithuania Girl" (by the author A. Judickas).

The museum is part of the "Cultural heritage speaks for us" project. The installed exposition \The Town of three nations" is linked to the number three, as is the town's coat of arms, which reflects the town's main development, depicting three roads and the town's triangular square, which symbolically linked the fates of the Tatars, Lithuanians, and Jews who had lived here. The museum conveys the uniqueness of nations through their culinary heritage, crafts, language, clothing and more. The project was funded under the Interreg V-A Lithuania-Poland cross-border cooperation programme under the European territorial cooperation objective.

The Butrimonys Fountain is one of the most beautiful in the country. Installed in the centre of the triangular square in 2019. The fountain is distinctive in its shape, and the swirling fountain is the only one of its kind in Lithuania. Inside the acrylic flask, a vortex of water swirls. The water runs through the wall of the fountain, creating an unforgettable sight. After dark, the fountain lights up in different colours. Open from spring to late autumn, weekdays from 10am to midnight, Saturdays and Sundays from 8.30am to midnight. During the festive Christmas period, the fountain becomes the location for the Christmas tree.

There are shops and a café, where you can enjoy Tatar "hundred leaf pie" - šimtalapis, Lithuanian šakotis pie, homemade cheese, and buy souvenirs.

Butrimonys is known as the first Tatar settlement. According to historians, at the end of the 14th century Vytautas the Great brought back the first Tatars, who later settled in Raižiai and Bazorai. The town is located at the crossroads of important roads from Vilnius to Alytus and Puņa. The square, formed at the intersection of several roads, became a market place, around which plots of land were distributed to traders and craftsmen. Butrimas, a trader, built his first home and market here, followed by other peasants who wanted to live closer to the market. The Jewish community has made a significant contribution to the development of trade. Lithuanians, Tatars and Jews coexisted peacefully in the town of Butrimonys, preserving traditions and working together. Perhaps that is why traditions, crafts and respect for folk art are still alive today. The museum has three separate spaces dedicated to the nations, reflecting the everyday life, crafts and religion of the Lithuanians, Tatars and Jews who lived in the Butrimonys eldership.

Butrimonys is believed to be named after the first inhabitant at the crossroads, the trader Butrimas. It was a good trade for him, because many customers passed by. Others followed Butrimas' example, and the town was established. In 1936, the newspaper "Lietuvos aidas" (Lithuanian echo) wrote about Butrimonys: "It is a big town. Streets are paved. Pavements have been taken care of. There are big markets where people come from other counties on Tuesdays. Butrimians have an original church with one tower." Lithuanians practiced traditional crafts, trade, farming, and got along well with their neighbours, the Jews and Tatars. Today, they celebrate festivals together with Tatars, cherish traditions, and respect the memory of the Jews who have lived in this region for centuries. During the Holocaust, Lithuanians and Tatars risked their lives to save them from extermination. In the post-war years, partisan units resisted the Russian occupation. Today, Butrimonys is reborn, with residents once again setting up businesses around the restored historic market square, and traders and craftsmen bustling around during the festive season, just as they did in the town's heyday.

The first Jews came to Lithuania in the 14th century, taking advantage of the invitation of the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Gediminas, for Western European merchants and craftsmen to come to our land. They were known as excellent merchants and craftsmen, so the Lithuanian princes were interested in settling them here. In 1897, there were about 2000 Jews living in Butrimonys, and before World War II there were over 800 people of this nationality. They were educated, entrepreneurial, followed customs, interacted with Lithuanians and Tatars, and served in the Lithuanian army. In 1930, Jews owned 52 (out of 54) shops, 6 breweries, 20 butcher shops, a tavern, 10 bakeries, a pharmacy, 1 lemonade company, a mill, an electric power station, a hairdresser, shoe, wool carding, leather, hat and furniture factories. There were 2 synagogues and a school. When the war broke out on 9 September 1941, Jews were shot in the village of Klydžionys, and only fifteen survived the end of the war. Today, Jewish graves and red brick buildings in Butrimonys commemorate their presence.

The Tatars are a national community with a deep history in Lithuania, settled by Vytautas the Great in 1397. Soldiers were given land and could practise their religion. Many Tatars lived and still live in Butrimonys, Raižiai, and other villages in the surrounding area. Many men in the Lithuanian army between the wars were high-ranking officers. The Tatars began to cultivate vegetable gardening, and the Lithuanian dinner tables have greeted šimtalapis pies and čeburekai. Nowadays, there are about 2,500 Tatars living in the country, more than 400 of them in Alytus County, mainly in Raižiai, Butrimonys and Alytus. For a long time, the Tatars lived a rather closed life because of their religion. The Soviet era destroyed the traditions of Tatar life. However, they have managed to preserve their ethnic culture, which is now available in the village of Raižiai thanks to an active Tatar community. There is also a mosque, a house of worship from the Soviet era, and the best-preserved Tatar cemetery in the village, called Beliavščizna.

The Butrimonys ethnographic museum is part of the "Cultural heritage speaks for us" project. The aim is to preserve cultural heritage and enhance its sustainable use for tourism. After the repairs of the premises a "The Town of three nations" exposition has been installed, which is linked to the number three, as is the town's coat of arms, which reflects the town's main development, depicting three roads and the town's triangular square, which symbolically linked the fates of the three peoples living here - Tatars, Lithuanians, and Jews. The museum's exhibitions convey the uniqueness and differences of nations through their culinary heritage, crafts, language, clothing and more. The project partner, the Municipality of Pisz, has redesigned a new space for one of the most popular Polish poets of the 20th century, K. I. The Gałczyński Museum in Praniai, Mozuria. The project was implemented by: the Butrimonys Gymnasium of Alytus district, the municipality of Pisz district (Poland).

Project funded by

Interreg cross-border cooperation programme of the European Union's European territorial cooperation objective V-A Lithuania-Poland cross border cooperation programme, Alytus district Municipality, Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Lithuania and Pisz district Municipality (Poland).

Contractors of Butrimonys Ethnographic Museum:
• UAB „Lithuanian import trade and export“;
• UAB „Traukos taškas“.

The project's subject partners are Alytus district municipality, Butrimonys municipality, Pisz district municipality (Poland).

Triangular Square
Three Nations Museum
Fountain
Museum
Lithuanians
Jews
Tatars

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Catholicism began to spread in Lithuania in the 13th century. In 1251, Grand Duke Mindaugas and part of the nobility were baptised. About 79% of people in Lithuania are Catholic. Book containing prayers - prayer book. Catholicism has many feasts. The most celebrated festivals are Christmas, Easter, Assumption of Mary and Pentecost.

Church of the Saviour in Butrimonys. The first wooden church was built in the 18th century. The brick building was built in 1906-1926. It is single-tower, massive, eclectic church building with Romanesque features. The church is enclosed by a stone fence with a three-arched gate. The church contains valuable 19th-century paintings by the painter Antanas Kmieliauskas, a native of the Butrimonys area. Half of the folk paintings.

Weaving traditions of the Butrimonys region: small checkers, in traditional colours, with pinning. The women learned to weave on ancient looms from each other. According to today's weavers, it is not difficult to weave with ancient looms, but it takes more time to prepare - to find information about the ancient traditional colours and patterns of the Dzūkija region and to consult ethnographers.

Vyžos is a shoe made of tree bark (photo 4). Vyžos are usually woven from the basts of linden, juniper, willows, and plane trees. Vyžos have been used in Lithuania since the neolithic age. People stopped using them most recently (in the 3-4th decade of the 20th century) in Dzūkija and Aukštaitija regions of Lithuania. Peasants usually wrapped their feet in woven wraps (tied with cords) or wear knitted woollen socks when wearing their Vyžos. Naginiai or other everyday household footwear.

The main raw materials used in Lithuanian folk textiles were linen and wool. The spinning wheel was invented in Germany in 1533. It is believed that it began to spread from there to Lithuania, firstly in manor houses in the 16th-17th centuries, and in the first half of the 18th century it was also used by serfs and serfs. The wheel was originally a rare and expensive item, and therefore not available to all peasant women in the 19th century. Girls could already weave using the wheel by the age of 10. That means they started their education much earlier. Spinning took place in the long winter evenings, when the women had already done all the farm and household work.

Jews in Butrimonys prayed in synagogues. In 1930, 2 synagogues were mentioned. The design of a synagogue built in 1897 has been preserved from the 19th century. The synagogue was not only a house of worship for Jews, but also a meeting place where various matters, including business, were discussed. Women were not allowed to sit next to men in the synagogue, but had to be seated on a balcony or in a separate area. No synagogues have survived in Butrimonys. Traditional religious festivals were an important part of Litvak (Lithuanian jews) life. All festivals - Passover, Hanukkah, Sukkot and others - were religious but derived from folk customs.

There are three Jewish burial sites in Butrimonys. More than 1200 Jews were murdered in the village of Klydžionys during the Holocaust. Most of the Jews were shot in the ravine by the Obelis stream. The grey cement monument is a testament to this. 240 Jewish elderly and children were buried within the boundaries of the village of Trakininkai, as well as in a ravine. The third site is the old Jewish cemetery on the outskirts of Butrimonys.

The Jews of Butrimonys were engaged in trade and crafts. There were 52 Jewish small shops, workshops, 6 beer houses, 20 butcher shops, a tavern, 10 bakeries, a pharmacy, 1 lemonade company, a mill, an electric power station, a hairdresser's shop, a shoe factory, a woollen tannery, a leather tanning factory, a hat making factory, and a furniture factory. The Jews were prominent herring sellers, and merchants distributed the salted fish from Norway, Holland, England and Scotland.

One of the iconic Jewish dishes is herring. Forshmak is the most popular chopped herring dish - chopped herring marinated in vinegar with onions and seasoned with sugar, cinnamon and even raisins. It combines sweetness and sourness. One of the traditional recipes for forshmak is with sour apples. Forshmak chopped with herring chopping instrument – kapokle.

It is believed that a mosque stood in Raižiai as early as the 16th century. The present one was built in 1889. It was the only one in Lithuania during the Soviet era. Reopened in 1993. Since 1999 it has been an object of immovable cultural heritage. The Raižiai Mosque is a wooden, rectangular building with a five-walled extension - a mihrab. The tower on the roof is a minaret, where a Muslim cleric calls the faithful to prayer.

There are 13 Tatar cemeteries in the Raižiai area, two of which are active. The closest cemetery to the mosque is called Podjavorai Cemetery. The earliest tombstone inscriptions in Arabic date back to the mid-17th century. The graves today are no longer different as those in Lithuanian cemeteries. Except there's a Muslim crescent everywhere. Nearby there are also cemeteries called Akmenica, Beliavščizna, Ziretka and others.

Furrier is one of the oldest Tatar traditional crafts. Lithuanian Tatars have been practicing this trade since they entered the lands of the GDL. Old-style fur farming uses natural materials such as plant bark, rye flour and a lot of handwork. Tools: wooden stands, various sized containers, metal knives, scrapers (this is also a scythe).

Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas, invited the Tatars to come to Lithuania as good and faithful soldiers. To commemorate the common history of Lithuanians and Tatars, a monument to Vytautas the Great was unveiled in Raižiai, one of the oldest Tatar settlements in Lithuania, in 2010. A capsule with a letter about the significance of the Žalgiris Battle, Great Duke Vytautas the Great and the history of the Tatars' settlement in the GDL and their life in Lithuania is embedded in the foundations.