Description

Vaiduotai Parish Church of the Conversion of Saint Paul

Having no church of their own the residents of Baltoji Vokė in the 19th century used to pray in the chapel in built in Vaidotai. The local landowner Hilarijus Lenskis commissioned a project for the new church from the architect from Vilnius, Tadeusz Rostworowski, in 1905. A neo-Baroque basilica building was supposed to have the reconstructed old octagonal chapel integrated on one side, and a three-section tower was intended on the other. Since another location has been chosen for the construction of the building, this was built according to the modified project and in 1910 the construction of a similar church but without a tower was completed. The protruded central part of the front façade, which matches the central nave, is laterally supported by double pilasters standing on high bases, supporting an extremely wide entablature, topped by a triangular pediment. The main portal has an integrated cartouche above, which is covered by segmental pediment; the upper part of the façade has a semi-circular window niche.

The areas of the lateral naves are connected to the central part by sloping attic walls – kind of a simplified version of volutes. The lateral façades are formed by the rhythm of the windows and lisenas – the lower windows are arranged in semi-circular niches, while the arches of the windows illuminating the central nave are segmental. They are surrounded by planes of irregular rectangle. The interesting fact is that the walls of the lateral naves are supported by the buttresses not typical of the Baroque. The façades of the transept is similar to the main one, however, there are no entrances and the installed windows are much larger. Three-nave interior area is of the forms typical of neo-Baroque. The large pillars dividing the naves are combined by semi-circular lintels, while at the top they have a profiled, broken-shaped entablature which is bent replicating the area of the presbytery; the naves are covered by cross vaults.

Detail