page_title: Museum of Antiquities in Vilnius
section_title: 1865–1915: center of Russification
hierarchical_section_title: Museum of Antiquities in Vilnius / History / 1865–1915: center of Russification
caption_attribution_description: The opening of Vilnius Public Library on 24 May 1867 attended by Tsar Alexander II of Russia
context_page_description: The Museum of Antiquities in Vilnius was a museum of archaeology and history established by Count Eustachy Tyszkiewicz in 1855 at the premises of the closed Vilnius University. It was the first public museum in the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania and is considered a predecessor of the National Museum of Lithuania even though only a handful of items from the Museum of Antiquities ended up at the National Museum. Together with the Archaeological Commission which functioned as a de facto learned society, the museum was the most prominent cultural and scientific institution in all of Lithuania and displayed many historical items that reminded of the old Grand Duchy and served romantic nationalism of Lithuanian nobles at the time when Lithuania was part of the Russian Empire. The museum collections rapidly grew to over 67,000 items in 1865 by absorbing large collections of minerals and zoological specimens from the closed Vilnius University, libraries of various closed Catholic churches and monasteries, and various donations from local nobles.
context_section_description: After the failed Uprising of 1863, the Tsarist regime enacted strict Russification policies. Already in November 1863, Governor General Mikhail Muravyov-Vilensky ordered a sculpture of King Władysław II Jagiełło and Jadwiga by sculptor Tomasz Oskar Sosnowski to be removed as it inspired Polish patriotism. In February 1865, Muravyov organized a commission to reorganize the museum which included general Arkady Dmitrievich Stolypin, Ivan Petrovich Kornilov, Mikhail Shakhovskoy-Glebov-Streshnev. The commission sought to discredit the museum and targeted sentimental items related to Polish and romantic nationalism, often ridiculing their dubious value and authenticity. For example, the commission frequently mentioned "moth eaten" cloak of poet Adam Mickiewicz and the binoculars that allegedly used by Tadeusz Kościuszko in the Battle of Maciejowice but were proven to be of a later technology. Many of museum holdings even remotely related to the former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth were taken to the Rumyantsev Museum in Moscow. For example, bust of Thomas Jefferson was removed fearing associations with Tadeusz Kościuszko or liberal democratic ideas. According to official protocols, the commission eliminated only 256 objects, but many more were moved to Moscow – estimated at 10,000 total items with perhaps as many as 6,029 numismatic items. Models of fortifications were removed to the Vilnius Military School. There were also reports of thefts and vandalism while the museum was closed. The thefts, particularly of numismatic items, continued. In 1902, the museum discovered long-term falsification of inventory books and more than 300 missing items.
  The museum was nationalized and the Provisional Archaeological Commission was disbanded. Museum library was turned into the Vilnius Public Library and the museum was attached to it. The main hall (the present-day Hall of Pranciškus Smuglevičius) was given to the library while the museum moved to the third floor. The main hall was redecorated – painter Vasily Gryaznov replaced Neoclassicist murals of Smuglewicz's with Neo-Byzantine decor. Three ceiling paintings were removed and were lost; the Smuglewicz's interior was restored by Jerzy Hoppen in 1929. The library was officially opened on 24 May 1867 in a ceremony attended by Tsar Alexander II. The new museum served to support and promote the official Russification policies. It now included a number of Slavic items, for example portraits of Russian officials or items related to the Eastern Orthodox Church. The reorganized museum lost the support from local population; the museum continued to receive contributions but those were mostly coins or small items. The museum was visited mostly by schoolchildren and soldiers during mandatory trips. It was visited by 9,514 people in 1905 and by 12,180 people in 1907. Interest in collecting items related to Polish–Lithuanian history did not diminish; instead, it became a form of passive resistance and an expression national pride. Some institutions, such as Ossolineum in Wrocław or Polish Museum in Rapperswil, were established outside of the Russian Empire. As these new cultural centers were far outside of Lithuania, it contributed to Vilnius losing its leading role in Polish–Lithuanian cultural life.
  Overall, the new library and museum suffered chronic shortages of premises, qualified staff, and funding. The museum showed little interest in studying history or archaeology until archaeologist Fyodor Pokrovsky became museum director in 1884. He studied tumuli, published museum guide with some photographs in 1892, and helped organizing the 9th congress of the Moscow Archaeological Society in Vilnius in 1893. Due to his urging, the Imperial Russian Archaeological Society started sending coin hoards found in the Northwestern Krai to the museum (a total of 46 hoards were acquired during his tenure). After the Russian Revolution of 1905, Russification policies were relaxed and various societies were able to function openly. The Polish Society of Friends of Science and the Lithuanian Scientific Society we
caption: Tsar Alexander II visits Vilnius Public Library in 1867 (painting by Ivan Trutnev)
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