About the client
Since 1962, the central palace of the Trakai Island Castle has been home to the Trakai History Museum exhibition that reflects the history of Trakai town, castles, and surrounding territories. Since 1992, the western casemates of the Trakai Island Castle have been home to 16 exhibition halls displaying the Museum’s collections of applied arts: furniture, smoking pipes, stamps, clocks, porcelain and glassware, and hunting trophies.
INFES work
By adding more rooms that have not been used so far, and by installing additional exhibitions, the Trakai Castle will become better adapted to the visitors’ needs. The castle’s courtyard and surroundings will also be maintained.
Significance of the project
The Trakai Island Castle is one of the most popular symbols of Lithuania. Its image is featured on Lithuanian paraphernalia, it is used for presenting the country abroad, and for decades it has remained one of the most visited historical sites. The unique acoustics of the Island Castle make it a venue for huge concerts, while its walls commemorating the country’s illustrious history are a magnet for film directors. A tidy castle environment and accessibility to all areas of the building are important for the representativeness of this unique site and even of the whole country.
Results
The construction of the Island castle was started by Kęstutis in the second half of the 14th century and completed in the first half of the 15th century by his son Vytautas. Although the castle has stood for so long, until now a part of its premises was inaccessible to visitors. After the renovation, the premises of one of Lithuania’s most impressive castles will be open to the public, so that Lithuanian citizens and foreign visitors will be able to get to know our history in even greater detail.
