Treasure of the rulers of Lithuania and Poland found: it was in the basement of Vilnius Cathedral

Important discovery in the basement of the Cathedral of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania: the treasure of the sovereigns of Lithuania and Poland(Alexander Jagellon who was grand duke of Lithuania from 1492 to 1506 and king of Poland from 1501 to 1506, his mother Elizabeth of Habsburg who was grand duchess consort of Lithuania and queen consort of Poland, and Barbara Radziwill who was grand duchess consort of Lithuania and queen consort of Poland and from 1548 to 1551) has been found. The insignia of the sovereigns, which were previously located in their funerary chapel inside the Cathedral, were hidden in a secret niche more than ninety years ago, probably in 1939, after the start of World War II, to protect them from spoliation.

Several items were found in the hiding place: the crown of the Grand Duke of Lithuania and King Alexander of Poland, the crown, chain, medallion, ring, and plaque from the tomb of Elizabeth of Habsburg, the crown of Barba Radizwill, as well as a scepter, three rings, a chain, and other materials, such as six decorated silver plaques, and numerous votive offerings. The discovery dates back to mid-December 2024, but the news was released in recent days.

“There have been several attempts to search for these insignia, so I am sincerely happy and grateful to all those who willingly contributed to these searches so that these objects were finally discovered through the cooperation of different institutions,” says Vilnius Archbishop Gintaras Grušas. “Now they will be studied, restored and in the future presented to the public. The insignia of the rulers of Lithuania and Poland are priceless historical values, symbols of the long tradition of the Lithuanian state, signs of Vilnius as the capital, wonderful works of goldsmithing and jewelry.”

The search for the treasure of the rulers of Lithuania and Poland

The sovereigns’ burial chapel was found in the cathedral’s basement in the fall of 1931, during work following the flood that year. In the crypt rested the remains of the Grand Duke of Lithuania and King Alexander of Poland and the two sovereign consorts Elizabeth of Habsburg and Barbara Radziwill, the former wife of Casimir IV of Poland and mother of Alexander, the latter wife of Sigismund II Augustus of Poland). Along with the remains were preserved the royal burial insignia.

With the onset of World War II and the threat of closure of Vilnius Cathedral, the cathedral chapter took care to preserve the cathedral’s most important objects. Thus the cathedral’s treasure was walled up in a niche located in one of the sanctuary’s stairways. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the subsequent independence of Lithuania, several attempts were made to find the treasure’s hiding place. Among the attempts to search for the insignia of the rulers was a project of the Polish Ministry of Culture in 2009, when a collaboration was signed with Lithuanian institutions and the archdiocese granted a permit for non-invasive search surveys with georadar, thermal imaging camera and metal detector. During these searches, a witness who participated in the concealment of the insignia was also heard. However, even this examination of the cathedral’s basement produced no tangible results.

In 2023, negotiations began with the Lithuanian Institute of History for a detailed digital inventory of the basement by scanning the building with a 3-D scanner. Analysis of the data obtained would have allowed the identification of structural changes and thus the non-invasive identification of possible locations of the hiding place. However, this project was discontinued due to lack of funds. Also, with the same goals was the “eCulture platform” heritage digitization project, financed with state funds and carried out by the Lithuanian National Library Martynas Mažvydas together with the Department of Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture.

Finally, in 2024, a meeting was held in Vilnius Cathedral on October 9, attended by representatives of the Archdiocese of Vilnius, the Cultural Heritage Department of the Ministry of Culture, and the Sovereign Palace Museum, in order to initiate a survey through an endoscopic camera. The examination, which took place on December 16, bore fruit: after several attempts, the hiding place was discovered. The Lithuanian authorities decided to take, describe, catalog and transfer to a safe place, on the same day of the discovery, the objects found in the hiding place. In the future they will be studied, restored and exhibited to the public.

Treasure of the rulers of Lithuania and Poland found: it was in the basement of Vilnius Cathedral

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.