For the 9th time, the St. Baltramiejus Fair invites you to learn about the traditions of crafts from the Middle Ages and Renaissance eras

 

In 2020 August 21-22 In Vilnius, the 9th Historical St. Bartholomew’s Fair is a celebration of the town’s crafts, arts and guild traditions of the late Middle Ages and Renaissance.

The fair has been known to Vilnius residents since the middle of the 17th century, when it was first mentioned in the statute of the Vilnius potter’s workshop in 1664. The two-day St. Bartholomew’s Fair begins with a solemn procession of artisans of all participants, carrying historical guild flags from the Dawn Gate, German, Dominican, St. Jono, Pilies streets to the Town Hall Square.

During the event, citizens of Vilnius and guests of the city can get to know the revived crafts of the townspeople, watch craft demonstrations, put themselves in the shoes of a craftsman and try to make a pot, spin yarn, weave cloth, make a coin, etc., as well as admire the costumes of the late Middle Ages and Renaissance periods, see, how it looked and fought in the 17th century soldiers, spend their free time according to the traditions of the era being reconstructed, dances, music and other entertainment, listen to lectures about the history of the goldsmiths’ workshop and masters of the mentioned period, purchase reconstructed XV-XVII century goldsmiths made by professional craftsmen. products.

In the program of the fair, not only dozens of music, dance, and martial arts performances await the guests. This year, the craft demonstration program will invite you to get to know the crafts up close – more than 70 craftsman-reenactors will live demonstrate and teach various ancient secrets: from the planing of breadbasket shuls, the carving of wooden sculptures, or the techniques of decorating the rings of LDK rulers, to the production of archaic glass necklaces.

The organizers invite the residents of Vilnius and the guests of the city to celebrate this festival of the city’s artisans together, thus commemorating the 525th anniversary of the founding of the Vilnius goldsmith’s workshop – in 1495. On August 23, the Grand Duke of Lithuania Aleksandras Trakais approved the statute of the first LDK Goldsmiths’ Workshop. This is the first craftsman’s workshop established in Lithuania, from which the entire history of craft workshops in Lithuania began, which lasted from the 15th century. the end of the 19th century the end

Historical St. Baltramiejus fair is a certified part of Lithuanian national heritage, nurturer of revived crafts and cultural traditions of the city. This revived celebration is an intangible cultural heritage value that significantly strengthens the cultural content and importance of the historic city center of Vilnius – a UNESCO World Heritage site.