Lukiškės Prison
From the fringes of society to the cultural hub
A walk through one of the most notorious facilities in Lithuania
Prison’s perimeter wall and St Nicholas church
When I discovered that Lukiškės prison opened its doors to tourist walks and tours, I jumped at the chance to book our tickets. Lukiškės is a place that conjures up associations with danger, fear, violent crimes, merciless punishments and mystery in the minds of those who ever lived in Lithuania.
And If at this point you are thinking “This means nothing to me, I know absolutely nothing about Lukiškės", you may be surprised to learn that you know more than you think: Lukiškės was used as a filming location for some of the scenes in the Netflix hit “Stranger Things“ as well as tv series “Young Wallander".
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And If at this point you are thinking “This means nothing to me, I know absolutely nothing about Lukiškės", you may be surprised to learn that you know more than you think: Lukiškės was used as a filming location for some of the scenes in the Netflix hit “Stranger Things“ as well as tv series “Young Wallander".
Click to zoom
I did a cursory bit of research before the visit and already knew that the prison was built in 1904 and so has been in continued use for over a century. I also knew that all inmates were relocated to other facilities and the prison was officially closed in 2019, until its reopening earlier this year as a cultural space under the brand name of Lukiškės 2.0
But even with this surface-level prep, I was blown away by two things during our visit to Lukiškės:
But even with this surface-level prep, I was blown away by two things during our visit to Lukiškės:
- Just how central its location really is. I lived in Vilnius for a number of years, but had no idea that every time I was in the vicinity of the Parliament, I was also going past the prison building.
- How much beauty there is on prison campus despite (or maybe because of) its 117 years' history.
Staircase railings
I could happily create a separate feature just on these staircase railings! There are references of them being the work of Zimmerman'scompany, who were based in Vilnius, but, alas, so far I have not been able to find any other mentions of this company.
How great do these floor tiles look!
The prison complex was the most expensive building constructed in the region in the early 20th century. It had its own water supply and sewage system. The cells were fully equipped, heated and ventilated, and constructed entirely of non-combustible materials (except for window frames and doors).The prison block alone cost 504,000 roubles. I tried to do some calculationsto see what this amount would be today and I was coming up with numbers close to 900mil Roubles in today's money for the whole of the complex, which sounds an awful lot to me, although I am no expert, of course.
the most distinctive buildings in the complex was the Orthodox St. Nicholas Church, one of the finest Orthodox churches in VilnIus at thE time.
The idea behind the design of the prison complex is based on Jeremy Bentham's vision of Panopticon, which also inspired designs of Moabit Prison in Berlin and Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. Although standing inthe foyer/chapel of Lukiškės, it is quite easy to forget that you are in a prison.
There is human history and a personal story behind every cell door.
Prison corridors and cells
Empty, still, decaying, they are also eerily beautiful.
The stark exterior and remaining parts of the furnishings help to paint a picture of what life in Lukiškės must have been like for an inmate.
But even environments as bleak, strict and perhaps hopeless as Lukiškės prison, can inspire creativity. This is particularly evident as you walk through the outdoor spaces of the exercise yard, where inmates were able to spend an hour a day.
So perhaps it is not entirely surprising then that since the closure of the prison in 2019, it has been repurposed as a space to host cultural activities, concerts, festivals, and exclusive tours for at least the next 2 years.
The place felt positively buzzing with musicians practicing ahead of their evening performances, artists rushing to the studios they rent in the administration building, people leisurely spending time at the bar set up in the inner courtyard, catching rays. After our tour we were invited to hang around and soak in the wonderful atmosphere.
The place felt positively buzzing with musicians practicing ahead of their evening performances, artists rushing to the studios they rent in the administration building, people leisurely spending time at the bar set up in the inner courtyard, catching rays. After our tour we were invited to hang around and soak in the wonderful atmosphere.
We really enjoyed our experience at Lukiškės and even our kids (15 and 8 year old) got into it and found it interesting, due in no small part to the efforts of our tour guide Monika, who was fabulous.
Next time we are in town, we will look to book the night time tour of the prison for an added spooky thrill!
Next time we are in town, we will look to book the night time tour of the prison for an added spooky thrill!
