Every country takes great pride and responsibility in having cultural and natural heritage sites or locations inscribed on the World Heritage List. Lithuania is proud of its five sites of outstanding universal value that are globally recognized.
Vilnius Historic Centre
Political centre of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 13th to the end of the 18th century, Vilnius has had a profound influence on the cultural and architectural development of much of eastern Europe. Despite invasions and partial destruction, it has preserved an impressive complex of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and classical buildings as well as its medieval layout and natural setting. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1994.
Photography by Gytis Oržikauskas
Curonian Spit
The Curonian Spit, located in the territories of two states, the Republic of Lithuania and the Russian Federation, was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000 as an outstanding example of a sand dune landscape, whose survival is constantly threatened by natural forces (wind, floods, and tides). Following devastating human interference that nearly destroyed the spit, it was restored through extensive conservation and stabilization efforts that began in the 19th century and continue to this day.
Photography by Viktorija Gadeikienė
Kernavė Archaeological Site (Cultural Reserve of Kernavė)
The Kernavė Archaeological site, about 35 km north-west of Vilnius in eastern Lithuania, represents an exceptional testimony to some 10 millennia of human settlements in this region. Situated in the valley of the River Neris, the site is a complex ensemble of archaeological properties, encompassing the town of Kernavė, forts, some unfortified settlements, burial sites and other archaeological, historical and cultural monuments from the late Palaeolithic Period to the Middle Ages. The site has preserved the traces of ancient land-use, as well as remains of five impressive hill forts, part of an exceptionally large defence system. Kernavė was an important feudal town in the Middle Ages. The town was destroyed by the Teutonic Order in the late 14th century, however the site remained in use until modern times. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004.
Photography by the State Cultural Reserve of Kernavė
Struve Geodetic Arc
The Struve Geodetic Arc is a chain of triangulation measurements extending over 2,820 km from Hammerfest (Norway) to the Black Sea, crossing 10 countries: Lithuania, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Norway, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Finland, and Sweden. This chain was measured between 1816 and 1855 by several scientists led by astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve. The research conducted the first precise measurements of a meridian segment, which helped determine the accurate size and shape of our planet and marked a significant advance in the development of Earth sciences and topographic mapping. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2005.
Photography by The Lithuanian National Commission for UNESCO
Modernist Kaunas: Architecture of Optimism, 1919-1939
This property testifies to the rapid urbanization that transformed the provincial town of Kaunas into a modern city that became Lithuania’s provisional capital between the First and Second World Wars. Its community-driven transformation of an urban landscape was adapted from an earlier town layout. The quality of modern Kaunas was manifested through the spatial organization of the Naujamiestis (New Town) and Žaliakalnis (Green Hill) areas, and in public buildings, urban spaces and residences constructed during the interwar period that demonstrate a variety of styles in which the Modern Movement found architectural expression in the city. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2023.
Photography by Martynas Plepys
Information based on unesco.org
Read more about UNESCO World Heritage in Lithuania here