Kražiai M. K. Sarbievijus Cultural Centre: a museum and cultural centre in the only surviving building of the former Kražiai college

A surviving building of the Kražiai Jesuit college

The Jesuits established themselves in Kražiai early in the seventeenth century. A 1614 endowment by Jan Karol Chodkiewicz enabled the college to open in 1616, and it became one of Samogitia's leading centres of education. By the eighteenth century, the ensemble contained many buildings and a church.

The former students' residence is the only building to survive from the college's principal complex. The present multifunctional centre opened in the restored structure in 2008. Visitors therefore enter a real part of the academic ensemble rather than a scenic modern reconstruction.

A museum of the town and its schools

The local museum traces its origins to the 1966 exhibition The Path of the Kražiai School. A school museum followed in 1969, and the collections moved several times before returning to the restored college building in 2008.

Permanent displays examine the area's prehistory and urban development, its street pattern, the Jesuit college, the later gymnasium and notable local figures. Plans, photographic copies, archaeological finds and a model of the college help visitors grasp the scale of the lost ensemble.

Sarbievijus, a 3D reconstruction and education

The centre is named after Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, the seventeenth-century Jesuit and Latin poet known in Lithuanian as Motiejus Kazimieras Sarbievijus. The education activity Rebuild the Jesuit Church uses a wooden 3D puzzle and his work The Consecration of the Stone, written for the start of church construction in 1621.

Museum projects draw on archival and scholarly research. They include hypothetical architectural reconstructions of the college, an interactive table for exploring local history, and copies of lecture manuscripts and rare prints. Group education normally needs advance booking.

Opening hours, guided visits and prices

On July 22, 2026, the official page listed museum hours of Tuesday-Saturday, 8:00-17:00, from June 1 to August 31, and Monday-Friday, 8:00-17:00, from September 1 to May 31. Guided visits had to be booked in advance. Check the schedule again before travelling.

In the price list approved on May 26, 2026, museum admission was €2, with a 50 per cent reduction for schoolchildren, students, pensioners, and disabled visitors. A museum guide cost €10 for a group of up to 20 people and €20 for a group of 21 or more. Confirm current prices officially.

Events may alter access to some rooms. Consult the specific programme on the official website and allow enough time for the museum rather than viewing only the exterior.