On January 18, 2024, the Museum of Culture and Identity of Lithuanian Jews (Pylimo st. 4) opened its doors—a new and the largest branch of the Vilna Gaon Museum of Jewish History, informally and succinctly known as the Litvak Museum.
Located at 4A Pylimo Street in Vilnius, in the former Jewish “Tarbut” Gymnasium building, the Litvak Museum is the first museum in Lithuania to present such a comprehensive and multifaceted portrayal of Lithuanian Jewish history, culture, customs, and diverse narratives of daily life. The top floor hosts a permanent exhibition dedicated to Rafael Chwoles, one of the most prominent 20th-century Jewish painters from Vilnius.
Special attention is also given to world-renowned Litvaks—Jews born in, living in, or connected to Lithuania—such as Nobel Prize laureates Aaron Klug and Bernard Lown, artists Mark Antokolsky, Jacques Lipchitz, Neemiya Arbitblat, and Hollywood stars Ruth Roman, Al Jolson, and Laurence Harvey.
The four-story building houses 17 modern exhibitions (designed by the architectural studio Processoffice, lead architect Vytautas Biekša). Visitors are invited to explore not only authentic artifacts but also engage interactively in the discovery of Lithuanian Jewish history.
The ground floor is dedicated to welcoming and serving visitors, with an educational activity room. The exhibitions are spread across the remaining three floors:
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The first exhibition floor presents key events and phenomena shaping Lithuanian Jewish culture, identity, and everyday life: historical context, Judaism, shtetl life, Jewish languages, and other community-defining elements.
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The second floor is devoted to secular Lithuanian Jewish culture and creativity—literature, music, theater, visual arts—and features personal stories by Lithuanian Jews reflecting on their relationships with their homeland and the identity-forming factors that influenced them.
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The third floor is home to the Rafael Chwoles Museum, which reveals the complexities of the first half of the 20th century through the life and works of one man. The painter’s works were donated to the museum by his sons, Milij and Alexander, who live in Paris.
