Riding through the Latvian – Lithuanian «borders», some 12 km before the small provincial town of Siauliai we came across the legendary Hi...

Hill of Crosses: Lithuanian timeless icon

Stara Varos

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Riding through the Latvian – Lithuanian «borders», some 12 km before the small provincial town of Siauliai we came across the legendary Hill of Crosses - in Lithuanian «Kryžių Kalnas». I have heard of this sacral place long before I ever visited it, but, to be honest, the site was far larger than I had imagined. Situated in the middle of a vast area of grass fields, the hill rises like out of nowhere.

Although its dimensions are around 60 meters long and 60 meters wide, the number of the crosses is unknown. It is estimated from 200,000 up to half million of every size, material and design. Over the years on the Hill are not only brought crosses, but also some gigantic statues of Jesus Christ, paintings of Lithuanian heroes, thousands of tiny crucifixes and other offerings. The sure thing is, they are unique artifacts of Lithuanian folk-art.

The origin of the practice of planting crosses is not certain as it dates back to the 14th century. It is believed that the first crosses were left on the Hill by the relatives of the victims after the rebellion of 1831 and 1863 against the Russian tsar, as families couldn’t locate the bodies of the rebels or couldn’t offer them a proper burial ceremony.

Some crosses are also memorials for people that were deported to Siberia in Soviet times. During the Soviet era when religion was forbidden, the Hill was considered a symbol opposing the Soviet ideology, so the crosses were brought down and the hill was bulldozed and leveled several times.

Nevertheless, the more the site was crushed, the more the Lithuanian people were bringing new crosses, even at nights, despite the great risk of getting arrested by the KGB or the Soviet army who were guarding the area.

Eventually, the Hill stood for as the memorial of resisting the communist regime. After Lithuania passed the Golgotha leading to independence, the pilgrimage site developed from a field synonymous to oppression and sufferings to a timeless icon of Lithuania’s national identity and religiousness.