In a vivid orange exhibition space, former President Dalia Grybauskaitė listens as Dr. Milda Kvizikevičiūtė (in a green patterned dress), one of the curators, presents a display table featuring ceramic reconstructions of historical dishes, biscuit moulds, vegetables, and a frying pan. The table is illustrated with recipes and foods once enjoyed by Renaissance queens Barbara Radziwiłł and Catherine Jagiellon. Nearby stand co-curators Dr. Vaida Ragėnaitė (in a violet dress) and Julija Janus (in pink stripes), along with Rūta Kačkutė (in a dark blue dress), general director of the National Museum of Lithuania. Exhibition cases with rare books and portraits are visible in the background.

To open an exhibition is a celebration in itself. But to have a President Dalia Grybauskaitė as a patron of exhibition and give her a personal guided tour is huge honor!

Queens, Realms and Emotions open till 4 January, 2025. #NationalMuseumOfLithuania, House of Histories
#Lithuania

A museum exhibit featuring a taxidermied falcon perched on a branch inside a glass case. In front of it, another glass case displays an open illustrated book showing a detailed drawing of a falcon. In the background, a large, ornate tapestry depicts a vivid hunting scene with figures on horseback, dogs, and wild animals in a dense forest setting. The display highlights the cultural and symbolic role of falcons in historical hunting traditions.

Falcon in its natural habitat.
🦅
It’s always nice to see exhibition come to life!

📖Les délices des la natura, Nürnberg, 1774
🪶Falco cherrug
🖼️ Tapestry with hunting scene

Quenns, Realms and Emotions from June 4th at the #NationalMuseumofLithuania

A speaker presenting at an academic conference.

Title page of a book: A Relation of the Distressed Statė of the Church of Christ processing the Protestant Religiom in the Great Dukedom of Lithuania.

Title page of a book by Samual Clarke. A Generał Martyrologię, published in London, 1677

What a week! #REFORC2025 has ended, and it was a blast. I had the opportunity to discuss a Lithuanian text published in London to raise aid for Reformed churches in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania devastated by the Deluge.
#NationalMuseumOfLithuania #rarebooks #specialcollections
@reforc.bsky.social

Ornamental initial “F” from an early printed book, depicting a dramatic scene of a woman fleeing while being chased by a male figure in a landscape setting

Engraved initial “G” from an early printed book, featuring a seated or crouching figure wearing a hat, pushing a cart filled with plants.

Engraved initial “D” from an early printed book, featuring a putto seated on a dolphin, holding a violin in left hand.

F G D - some of the ornamental letters from Apoftemmi di Plutarcho (Venezia, 1566). It always fascinates me, what was the creative process while making them.

#NationalMuseumOfLithuania #earlymodern #rarebooks

An ornate printed page featuring an engraved portrait of King George I composed entirely of tiny printed text forming his facial features, hair, and clothing. The circular border around the portrait reads: “THE EFFIGIES OF KING GEORGE CONTAINS THE LORD’S PRAYER, THE CREED AND THE X COMMANDMENTS, THE PRAYERS FOR THE KING AND THE ROYAL FAMILY, AND THE XXI PSALM.” Surrounding the border are cherubic faces. Below the portrait, large calligraphic text proclaims King George’s full royal titles in a highly decorative style with ruled red guidelines.

An engraved portrait of King George I composed entirely of tiny printed text forming his facial features, hair, and clothing. The circular border around the portrait reads: “THE EFFIGIES OF KING GEORGE CONTAINS THE LORD’S PRAYER, THE CREED AND THE X COMMANDMENTS, THE PRAYERS FOR THE KING AND THE ROYAL FAMILY, AND THE XXI PSALM.”

When You want to ‘economize the text.’ So you do. Into curls, shadows, and powdered wigs.

The Book of Common Prayer and Administration of the Sacraments, London,1717

#NationalMuseumOfLithuania #earlymodern #rarebooks #specialcollections

Woodcut illustration from a 16th-century printed book depicting the “Monster of Cracow” — a humanoid figure with multiple animal heads (resembling barking dogs) protruding from its chest, elbows, and knees. The creature has bird-like feet, clawed hands, a distorted face with large eyes, and a long curved tail. The image is surrounded by dense blackletter German text.

The Monster of #Cracow: a deformed child, supposadly, born in 1543 or 1547, said to have dogs’ heads on elbows, chest, and knees. It lived 4 hours and died crying “Watch, the Lord Cometh.”

Sebastian Münster, Cosmographey, Basel, 1588
#NationalMuseumOfLithuania #earlymodern #rarebooks #Poland

Delicate yet intricate: an early modern ornament made by piercing paper, extending through several pages like a hidden lacework woven into the book.

#NationalMuseumOfLithuania

What would you gift your “dearest, most educated friend” in the 17th century? Obviously De Amphitheatro by Justus Lipsius, published by the legendary #OfficinaPlantiniana. A timeless token of gratitude and intellect. 📜 #RareBooks #BookHistory #NationalMuseumOfLithuania

Look at the details of this permission
to hunt! 😮 It was issued to Johann Nicolaus Schubert in 1755 and decorated with intricate miniature hunting scenes.
🐕🦌
#specialcollections #NationalMuseumOfLithuania #parchment #hunt

How to repair a book? Easy! Grab a piece of other 📚or 📜 and slap it over the damaged spot.
How to fix a mistake? Even simpler! Take a scrap of paper and write over it like it never happened.

Here are a few snapshots of document before it went to the preservation team.

#NationalMuseumOfLithuania

Melchiorre Sessa, Venetian printer, left us Dissimilium infida societas and a ‘mouse’ in his iconic cat-and-mouse mark. Though judging by the size of that rodent… maybe the cat should’ve planned better… #BookHistory #specialcollections #earlymodern #NationalMuseumOfLithuania

Glass desiccator with a handle on top, containing a ceramic pot undergoing preservation. The background features shelves with chemical bottles, indicating a restoration and conservation workspace.

Preparing for an exhibition! It’s so special to see my chosen exhibits undergo preservation and restoration before being displayed—especially since my day-to-day work revolves around paper.

Queen, Kingdom, and Feelings opens June 4, 2025. 👑 #CulturalHeritage #NationalMuseumOfLithuania

Detail from the 1767 document where King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Stanisław II August confirmed Magdeburg rights previously granted to Novogrudok (now Belarus) by earlier rulers. Signed in Warsaw, January 20.
#NationalMuseumOfLithuania #MagdeburgRights #SpecialCollections

The image depicts an early printed book page. On top of the page, there is a loose sheet featuring ink drawings of two human figures. One is a detailed bust of a man, focusing on the chest and face, drawn in a classical style. The second drawing, in a looser sketch style, portrays a bearded face.

It’s nice to find something else than just plain text in a book.

#NationalMuseumOfLithuania