Before the Second World War, residential and commercial buildings and houses of craftsmen stood here. They were bombarded by German fleets during the war. The houses were not rebuilt and the square was constructed instead. The square was reconstructed in 2012. The newly-installed colourful fountain was adorned with the verses of poet Jurgis Kunčinas.

It is believed that the wooden synagogue was built here in 1856. A brick house was built in its place at the end of the 19th century. At the beginning of the 20th century, Alytus was devastated by large fires. The synagogue survived and was rebuilt. However, there are opinions that in 1911 it was simply built. A rabbi’s house was built next to it that same year. The synagogue was not blown up during World War II. It was ruthlessly devastated during the Soviet era and has now been reconstructed to become the Audiovisual Arts Center.

The exhibition “Shalom, Alytus!” Presents the life of Alytus Jews during the interwar period. The Jewish community at that time accounted for nearly 30 per cent. city dwellers, making their contribution to the city’s history vivid and felt to this day. The material collected by the museologists reveals the economic, social and cultural activities of the Jewish community, and tells about schools, societies, and the Holocaust. We invite visitors to find houses where Jews lived, to find out what films were shown in Jewish cinemas, to find out who was the owner of the “house with lions”. We invite you to get to know the Jewish history of Alytus and discover the legacy of this community in today’s city.

The Audiovisual Arts Center works:

Tuesdays – Fridays
9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
on Saturdays
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
the centre is closed on Sundays and Mondays.

Kauno g. 9, Alytus
GPS: 54.401036, 24.048025 (WGS)

The residential house in Alytus owes its name to the figures of little lions that adorn its steps. The house was built after a devastating fire in the city in 1911; its builder was Mordechai Bokshitzky, whose initials along with the construction date can be seen on the facade of the house. During the years between the world wars, a prominent figure in the local community. The lawyer Mendel Bokshitzky lived in the house, and his son Saadia Bahat, who later became a well-known Israeli artist, was born here. During the Second World War, Bokshitzky and his family ended up in the Vilnius ghetto. Lithuanian saved his daughters Lily‘s life, and his son Saadia also managed to escape. In 1944-1953, fighters for Lithuania‘s independence were imprisoned and tortured in this house. 
Next to the house, there are four Stolpersteine (brass plates installed in streets and sidewalks, bearing the names and key life dates of victims of Nazi persecution), commemorating Mendel Bokshitzky, his wife Sheyna, his son Saadia Bahat and his daughter Lily Winterfeld.
The building is listed in the Register of Immovable Cultural Heritage of the Republic of Lithuania.

One of the most famous interwar houses in Alytus is the Zimavičienė masonry. This is the first three-story house in interwar Alytus, built-in 1932. Kostas Zimavičius died in the middle of construction. Adelė Zimavičienė took care of further construction matters. After the work was completed, the house was nicknamed Zimavičienė’s Masonry by the people of Alytus. A year later, the owner rented out the premises of the fully furnished house to shops and associations. The city’s proposal to establish a modern hotel on one floor was rejected. During the Second World War, after the German bombings, the building was accidentally left intact. After the war, it was repaired and has reached our days.

Town Hall Square. Before Town Hall Square came into existence in 1990, the central part of Alytus town comprised of the triangular Komsomol Square (from 1954) and the Market Square in front of it, which used to host regular markets. They were surrounded by early 20th-century commercial and residential houses, most of which were demolished in 1987 when construction of the present Town Hall began (finished in 1989).

Construction of the modern, spacious Riflemen’s House was completed in 1938. It was named after Antanas Juozapavičius, the first military officer to be killed in the Wars of Independence, and was popularly called Kurhaus. The first floor had a large hall with a stage, a lobby with a canteen and a porch with a restaurant. Jazz was played there in the evenings. The second floor was occupied by the riflemen’s club and a museum dedicated to Juozapavičius. The basement had an exercise area. During the Soviet period, the building was used as a cultural centre. It was given back to Alytus Riflement’s Union after the Restoration of Independence.

The City Garden, famous for its roses, was established in the very centre of Alytus, completed in 1931. It has remained legendary to this day. In 1936, according to the project of the city engineer V. Trečiokas, a fountain was installed with a pool in which goldfish swam and lilies bloomed. The idea was to place the fountain in the centre of the park so that it would be like the sun, and all the paths stretching from it would be like rays of sunlight. Squirrels bustling in the garden make many people smile. There are 55 species of trees and shrubs and three named oaks: 1930 planted in honour of President A. Smetona, 1933 – for the unity of the Baltic States, in 1939 an oak tree was planted in honour of K. Petrauskas. In 2018 the fourth oak tree was planted – dedicated to the centenary of Lithuania.
In the garden of the city, lovers of all time were happy to make dates. It usually took place at the fountain. Wooden park benches were often painted with love poems. Not everyone remembers the feelings that burst into pieces in the love corner of the City Garden or on the dance floor (called “plaščiatke”).

The “Angel of Freedom” monument was built for the first time in 1929 to commemorate the first decade of Lithuanian independence. The famous Dzūkai (inhabitants of south Lithuania) sculptor Antanas Aleksandravičius is the author of the sculpture. The monument went through several tests of nature and history. In 1934 it was struck and broken down by lightning (restored three years later). Later, in the fifties, the Angel of Freedom has pulled down again for political reasons. In 1991, the statue was again restored.

The first gymnasium in Alytus was established in 1919 without its own building. In 1925, a new building was completed and opened its doors – contractors from Kaunas won an open competition and erected it using materials from the former military barracks that once belonged to the Tsar. Today it is home to the School of Fine Crafts. The School carries out educational activities and also has a shop of students’ works.

In the square of Alytus town garden stands a memorial called “Silent Bell” dedicated for commemoration of nation’s torment. It gathers all memory symbols of nation’s resistance battles in one place. The memorial is designed to honour state prisoners and exiles, partisans of Dainava district as well as Lithuanian army rebels of June 22-28, 1941. Authors of the memorial are sculptor Stasys Žirgulis and architect Leonas Adomkus.

Poet Anzelmas Matutis published more than 30 books: poems, poems, and verse tales for children, he prepared literature and history reading books for preschool and school-age children. Anzelmas Matučius in 1984 H.K. Andersen’s diploma was awarded for the selection “Colored Woodpecker Forge” (by entering A. Matutis in the book of honour of prize-winning writers).

On 1991 October 19 The A. Matutis Memorial Museum (a branch of the Alytus Local History Museum) was opened in Alytus with a memorial plaque in the house where the poet Anzelmas Matutis – Matulevičius lived. The street in Alytus, where the poet lived, is also named after him.

Wooden sculptures are scattered in the growing pine forest next to the Anzelmos Matutis Memorial Museum (Anzelmos Matutis str. 8, Alytus). They have been given since 2012. the participants of the international symposium of wood carvers takes place every other year. Symposiums aimed at popularizing the work of children’s poet Anzelmas Matutis and are called by the name of a collection of poems by the poet, were organized in the city of Alytus at the initiative of sculptor Kęstutis Benediks. In 2012 the symposium was named after the collection of poems by Anzelmas Matutis “Rainbow Lake, 2014”. – “Colored woodpecker forge”, 2016 – “What’s in a man’s heart”, 2018 – “Sons of Fir”. Four years later in 2022 a sculpture symposium called “My Fantasyland” was held.

The Museum of Ethnography was founded in 1928 under the initiative of the local intelligentsia. More than 100,000 exhibits are kept there. These historical, ethnographical and archaeological antiques were collected to the museum fund from all the Southern Lithuania districts. There are several branches of the Museum of Ethnography. Free entry. Closed on Sunday and Monday.