This week, I`m presenting images from Lithuania.
They were taken by a friend of my client Villija, who just returned from there with her daughter Kendra.
All I know about this mount of crosses is that under Soviet rule, no displays of a religious nature were allowed.
If a cross was put up to commemorate the death of a loved one, the authorities smashed it down.
The Lithuanians then began to bring their crosses to this remote area, & a tradition began & more & more crosses were erected till this is what it is now.
Villija & Kendra were there to bring clothing & necessities to babies in an orphanage there that they collected through a network here in the US.
Here is the
Mount of Crosses
Villija & Kendra
That is beautiful.
It does have a lot of the beauty inherent in the faith people have to overcome adversity.
You also can see that all the carvings & artwork are singular & not something one buy`s at the “cross” store.
From what Villija told me, some of the woodcarvings are simply amazing.
Thank you SN
Very moving. Thanks to you and you’re friends in Lithuania for sharing it with us.
Indianadem,
It is definitely a bit of a strange monumental collection of one item, a cross.
It would seem to be almost like a graveyard, with 50,000 gravestones, on one spot.
That’s a fascinating collection. Truly a grassroots effort.
Hi Boran2,
It really must be a soul searching event to wander through over 50,000 of the crosses while also knowing that the Soviet Union bulldozed thousands of them & had police barriers to this area, yet the Lithuanians were back the next day. It`s definitely a showing of their perseverance in the face of great adversity.