Kedainiai Minaret

Kėdainiai, Lithuania

The Kėdainiai minaret is the only free-standing minaret in Lithuania. The minaret was built in 1880 by the Russian general Eduard Totleben, who was an owner of Kėdainiai manor. He built the minaret as a memorial to the Russian-Turkish war in which he had fought. Local legend also says that he built the minaret for his Turkish lover. The minaret is typical of Ottoman architecture. It is needle-topped, 25 meters high and has a balcony which can be reached by interior stairs. There are two plaques affixed to its wall. One is written in Ottoman Turkish and describes a beautiful palace built by the Ottoman sultan.

References:

Comments

Your name



Details

Founded: 1880
Category: Statues in Lithuania

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.5/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Edvinas Pikcius (4 months ago)
Only one object to see but only two (if I'm not mistaken) are present in Lithuania.
Viačeslav Čerlin (15 months ago)
I was surprised when I found out, that there is a lonely minoret in the park of Kėdainiai city. Looks awesome.
Iryna Panina (16 months ago)
A local calling card) The first big challenge faced by tourists is to reach the minaret. Car or taxi doesn't get you there. There are two ways to see it. The shortest way is to arrive at the railway station, walk around it, cross the railroad tracks and go straight. Another option takes more time because you have to bike or walk around the park and follow the online map. The park looks not very well maintained but there's a beautiful landscape. The second challenge is to get inside the building. It could be closed. Unfortunately, the minaret looks worse than photo. But still the minaret is a unique building of 1880s in Lithuania and it is worth a visit.
M. Sait atay (2 years ago)
A small nice minaret with an attractive story in a nice park
Dov J Balta (5 years ago)
Hidden little gem with historic spices.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Clementinum

The Clementinum is a historic complex of buildings in Prague. Until recently the complex hosted the National, University and Technical libraries, the City Library also being located nearby on Mariánské Náměstí. The Technical library and the Municipal library have moved to the Prague National Technical Library at Technická 6 since 2009. It is currently in use as the National Library of the Czech Republic.

Its history dates from the existence of a chapel dedicated to Saint Clement in the 11th century. A Dominican monastery was founded in the medieval period, which was transformed in 1556 to a Jesuit college. In 1622 the Jesuits transferred the library of Charles University to the Klementinum, and the college was merged with the University in 1654. The Jesuits remained until 1773, when the Klementinum was established as an observatory, library, and university by the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.