Anykščiai St Matthias Church

The church of St Matthias at Anykščiai was built between 1899 and 1909 in red brick in a neo-Gothic manner, and its twin towers reach seventy-nine metres, which makes it the tallest church in Lithuania. One tower has been fitted with a staircase and a viewing gallery near the top, and the climb of some hundred and eighty steps gives a wide view over the town, the Šventoji river valley and the surrounding forests, with the Anykščiai treetop walkway visible among the trees. Exhibitions on the church's construction and on local history are set in rooms up the stair. The town below is associated with the poem Anykščių šilelis by Antanas Baranauskas, whose barn-house museum stands nearby.

Highlights

• The tower climb - some hundred and eighty steps to the gallery.
• The valley view - the Šventoji, the town and the forests from the top.
• Neo-Gothic brickwork - the 1900s building at the town centre.
• Stair exhibitions - displays set in the rooms on the way up.

When to go

May to September for the clearest views; the tower keeps seasonal hours and closes in bad weather. Autumn colour in the valley is excellent from the gallery.

Good to know

The climb is a long narrow spiral stair and not for anyone uneasy with heights or confined spaces. The tower closes in wind and out of season. The church interior is plain compared with the exterior.

Nearby

Puntukas stone lies south; the treetop walkway is in the forest nearby.