Vilnius – Capital of Culture and Art

The Old Town of Vilnius as the heart of Lithuanian culture, represented by the free-standing bell tower of St John's Church at Vilnius University, with the Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit to the left in the background and the two towers of St Catherine's Church to the right. To the upper right: the issuing state "LIETUVA", the year "2017", and below that the mint mark.

The old town of Vilnius is among the best-preserved medieval city centres in Northeastern Europe and was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1994. The ensemble covers around 360 hectares and comprises more than 1,500 historic buildings in Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical styles. Particularly striking is the Baroque quarter around Vilnius University, one of the oldest universities in the Baltic region, founded in 1579 by the Jesuits. The freestanding bell tower of St. John's University Church has been an urban landmark for centuries. Alongside it, the Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit, the most important Russian Orthodox church in Lithuania, bears witness to the city's long multicultural history, in which Poles, Jews, Russians, Germans and Lithuanians lived side by side.

Vilnius developed into Lithuania's cultural capital especially during the 20th century. After decades of Soviet rule, the city experienced a cultural renewal following independence in 1990: museums, galleries, theatres and musical institutions were expanded or newly founded. Today, the Lithuanian capital is regarded as one of the most vibrant cultural centres in the Baltics, with an active art scene, international festivals and a dense network of educational institutions. Its status as European Capital of Culture in 2009 further highlighted this development. In 2017, Lithuania honoured the significance of Vilnius as a city of culture and art with a 2-euro commemorative coin, bringing its historic city centre into European focus.