Global True Lithuania Encyclopedia of Lithuanian heritage worldwide

Austria

Austria has more monuments based on the Lithuanian mythology than almost any other country. They have been erected by Lithuanian artists who participated in numerous sculpture symposiums in Austria.

Furthermore, just before Lithuania was re-occupied by the Soviet Union in 1944, almost 100 000 of Lithuanian refugees, known as DPs, fled westwards. While the majority of them ended up in parts of Germany occupied by the western powers, some 2000 ended up in parts of Austria ruled by the western powers. While the majority of them eventually were dispersed across other countries in the late 1940s and 1950s, some Lithuanian luminaries of the era died and are buried in Austria.

Paudorf monuments based on Lithuanian myths

Paudorf area hosted three symposiums of wooded sculptures in the years 2002, 2007 and 2012. During these symposiums, 40 wooden sculptures were erected along the pedestrian pathway linking Paudorf to Höbenbach that crosses a beautiful terrain with views of the Göttweig Abbey and surpasses 2 km in length. Of these 40, as many as 10 were created by Lithuanian artists, many of them based on the Lithuanian mythology.

Paudorf sculpture path

For example, "Eglė, the Queen of Serpents" by Algimantas Sakalauskas (height 3,47 m., erected in 2002) us based on the Lithuanian myth of the same name and is located at coordinates 48.353570, 15.624629, in the village of Paudorf itself.

Other Lithuanian-mythology-inspired sculptures here include:
"Aušrinė" (Lithuanian pagan name for Venus) by Arūnas Sniečkus.
"Aitvaras and Kaukas" (two Lithuanian mythological figures) by Kęstutis Grigonis.
"Jūratė ir Kastytis" (based on a mythology-styled Lithuanian fairytale) by Padelskas.
"Žemėpatis" by Tomas Stumbrauskas.

Aitvaras and kaukas

The close-up of Aitvaras and Kaukas that includes sculpture's name

Perkūnas sculptures at Großschönau

In Großschönau there are two wooden Algimantas Sakalauskas's wooden sculptures of Perkūnas, the god of thunder who was the highest god in the Lithuanian pagan pantheon. The older one of them was erected in 2005; it is 7,2 m tall, located at 48.650859, 14.939340. The newer one was erected in 2006 together with Ignas Sakalauskas and Ričardas Grekavičius, it is 7,55 m tall.

Lithuanian monuments in Austria by Algimantas Sakalauskas. Left to right: two Perkūnas monuments and the Eglė monument of Paudorf.

Famous Lithuanian burials in Austria

The small churchyard cemetery of Bachmaning village became the final resting place for Antanas Tumėnas who had served as the prime minister of Lithuania in years 1924-1925. Like many Lithuanian luminaries, he fled Lithuania in 1944 before the imminent Soviet re-occupation would have likely resulted in his death or exile. At this time, however, he was already of frail health, which was the reason why the Gestapo did not try him during the Nazi German occupation of Lithuania. Therefore, he died in 1946, before the Lithuanian DPs were allowed to leave Austria further on.

Antanas Tumėnas grave

Stasys Digrys, who was a member of Lithuania's first parliament when Lithuanian regained its statehood in 1918, on the other hand, lived longer. But even after the closure of DP camps, he decided to stay in Austria unlike most of fellow Lithuanian DPs, organising Lithuanian festivities in Vienna until his death in 1959. He is now buried at the Friedhof Grinzing cemetery of Vienna.

Stasys Digrys grave

In Austria, the gravestones are not perpetual. Once there are no relatives who care for them and pay taxes, they are destroyed by the cemetery administration. However, in the cases of Tumėnas and Digrys, the embassy of Lithuania in Austria became the official caretaker, paying the necessary tax. The embassy also marked each of the graves by an additional plaque that includes the Lithuanian coat of arms and also lists the positions Digrys and Tumėnas held in Lithuania.

Lithuanian-embassy-built plaque at Stasys Digrys grave