The name Sapieha Palace is well known across Lithuania and relates not only to the legacy of its original owner, the Great Lithuanian Hetman Kazimierz Jan Sapieha (1637–1720), but also to the wider Sapieha family, renowned patrons of science and culture. Today, the name of the Sapieha Palace is also associated with the thorough and dedicated work of historians, archaeologists, and restoration experts, who are working to study and preserve the building, so that it can serve a new purpose and become part of the contemporary city’s life. As a result of their efforts, the Sapieha Palace will function as a window into its long and sometimes convoluted history. 

Today, the Sapieha Palace hosts excursions, education for the whole family, various events and concerts, exhibitions. It embraces the values of creativity, attention to heritage, coherence, openness and internationality, and the team’s goal is to eventually transform the Sapieha Palace into an international cultural space, fostering respect for history and creating the conditions for an original dialogue between cultural heritage and contemporary art.

Brief history

The palace was constructed between 1689 and 1692 by the order of Kazimierz Jan Sapieha, Grand Hetman of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, voivode (palatine) of Vilnius. Situated next to the palace is a French-style park, Trinitarian Monastery and the Church of Jesus the Saviour. Architect Giovanni Battista Frediani, sculptor Giovanni Pietro Perti, and painter Michelangelo Palloni worked on the ensemble.The Sapieha family owned the palace until the 18th century. Later, in the 19th century, a hospital was located there, as well as an ophthalmology clinic, while in the Soviet era, an elite school of anti-aircraft defence radiotechnics was stationed there. After Lithuania regained its independence, a long period of archaeological and architectural research was carried out, and a restoration programme of the palace architecture was devised, the palace was restored and adapted for use. In the spring of 2024, the palace will open to visitors as a new department of the Contemporary Art Centre (CAC).