- Place
- Panevėžys City Municipality
- Region
- Aukštaitija
- Type
- granite monument erected in 2003 to the founder of Panevėžys
- Address
- Freedom Square by Old Riverbed Park, Panevėžys
- Coordinates
- 55.72964, 24.36377
- Visit duration
- 15-30 minutes for the monument; 1-2 hours with Old Riverbed Park, Freedom Square, and the city museum
- Best time
- in daylight year-round; early morning or evening for a quieter park setting
Monument to Alexander Jagiellon, Monument to the Founder of Panevėžys, Kunigaikščio Aleksandro paminklas
What you see beside Old Riverbed Park
The monument stands where the urban fabric of Freedom Square gives way to the green landscape of Old Riverbed Park. A crowned ruler carved from warm reddish granite rises on a polished dark stone pedestal. Alexander wears a long cloak, carries a sword, and holds a model of a church in his left hand.
The church model is not a generic royal attribute. It points directly to the document from which Panevėžys dates its history. Walk around the monument rather than viewing only its front: the approach from the square emphasises its vertical form, while the park path reveals its relationship with the water and civic landscape.
The 1503 donation and the beginnings of Panevėžys
On 7 September 1503, Grand Duke Alexander granted land between the Lėvuo and Nevėžis rivers to the priest of Ramygala. The condition was that a church be built in the area. The Virtual Panevėžys Region gallery identifies this donation charter as the earliest written document concerning the beginnings of Panevėžys.
The city did not physically appear in a single day. The privilege created a legal and sacred foundation for a settlement that later expanded along both sides of the Nevėžis. Alexander is therefore called the city's founder, although modern Panevėžys took shape over several centuries.
The first church has not survived. Its tradition was continued by the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, which itself was rebuilt and moved more than once. The model in the statue's hand links today's city centre with that older beginning in the Old Town.
Stanislovas Kuzma's anniversary monument
The monument was created by Stanislovas Kuzma, one of the leading Lithuanian sculptors of the late twentieth century. The Gabrielė Petkevičaitė-Bitė Public Library records granite as its material, 2003 as the year of completion, and 6 September as the date of the official unveiling.
It was commissioned for Panevėžys's 500th anniversary. The work therefore tells two stories: that of a ruler at the turn of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and that of the city's decision in 2003 to embody its origin story in a public figure. It is an artistic monument to historical memory, not an archaeological reconstruction of Alexander's precise appearance.
Who was Alexander Jagiellon?
Alexander Jagiellon was born in 1460, became Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1492, and King of Poland in 1501. Panevėžys City Municipality notes that he was a son of Casimir IV Jagiellon and Elizabeth of Austria, married Helena, daughter of Ivan III of Moscow, and spent much of his reign in Vilnius.
His reign was not a simple success story. The Grand Duchy fought the increasingly powerful Muscovite state and lost substantial territory. Alexander died in Vilnius on 19 August 1506 and is the only ruler of the Jagiellonian dynasty buried in Vilnius Cathedral.
Planning a visit
The monument is in an open civic space with no ticket desk or set opening hours. Allow 15-30 minutes for an unhurried look. For a longer route, follow the paths through Old Riverbed Park to Freedom Square and continue the historical story at Panevėžys Regional Museum.
The exact Google Maps listing marks the monument itself rather than the general centre of Freedom Square. On 27 July 2026 it showed 4.7 out of 5 from 54 reviews. Ratings and review counts change, while events in the park can make the area busier, so morning and evening are usually easiest for photography.
