Kauno Šv. Jurgio kankinio pranciškonų observantų vienuolyno varpinės bokštas: ikonografinis aspektas

ENIn the second decade of the 17th century a three level belfry was constructed at the Franciscan Observants’ Convent of St George the Martyr in Kaunas, expanding the Bernardine’s cemetery. At the same time a new convent and Church of the Holy Trinity was also built for the Bernardine Sisters, where the tower served to echo the mentioned belfry of the Bernardine convent. The object of this research is the Bernardine convent’s belfry, whilst the aim is to try to reconstruct the changes in the belfry’s iconography over different stages, based on the surviving works, photographs and images recorded using other means. The field of research encompasses the period from the last quarter of the 17th century to 2014, and can be divided into four stages. The oldest image of this belfry is found in Konstantinas Tiškevičius’ book „Nėris ir jos pakrantės“ [The Neris River and its Banks], which gives a comprehensive and broad account of the banks of the Neris River from its source to the mouth of the Nemunas River.In an illustration of the tri-level belfry from 1871 we can see that here on the third level there used to be bells, whilst the belfry’s corners were highlighted in a rustic manner, thus strengthening that impression of solidity. The side niches contained four complete figures and three semi-figures It has been found that on the top level on the left there was a statue of St Dominic, and on the right – of St Francis of Assisi. Pope Innocent III had a vision of how the Basilica of St John the Baptist in Laterane was collapsing, and how it was supported by St Francis of Assisi together with St Dominic.Based on various written sources and historical photographs, it was concluded that on the second level of the belfry, that is, on the bottom plane of the wall, there used to be a painted copy of the painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the Infant. Information from manuscript sources has contributed to the recreation of this painting and its copy’s history. It is mentioned in the Bernardine Convent archive (for the first time in 1669), and from the mid-19th century in church visitation acts and inventorial lists (for the last time in 1939). It was discovered by canon Algimantas Kajackas, recognized by the author of this article, and later restored and researched in many ways. In the late 17th century, the cult of this particular painting of Mary of Czestochowa was immensely strong in Lithuania. Bishop Motiejus Valančius notes that in earlier times people would gather before the painting on festive folk music and dance evenings and Catholic feast-days and sing the Liturgy and other hymns. Thus, a copy of this picture was painted on the belfry’s section of the wall in a shallow niche. Summarizing this visual material, it becomes evident that the belfry’s iconography changed prior to the First World War. As we have a photograph, it is easier to recognize figures and recreate the belfry’s iconographic program. The third stage coincided with the occupation in 1940, and can be identified as an empty period, in terms of iconography. For a long time the belfry’s cross was replaced with a red five-pointed star.To summarize this research on the belfry, encompassing the period from the last quarter of the 17th century to the first half of 2014, that is, a period of almost 350 years, we can state that the main changes to Christian iconography mostly depended on the changing, unstable political situation. In the first and second stages, the reasons for iconographic changes stem from the events that were taking place in the Church of Lithuania, whilst the third, Soviet occupation, stage was no less than bulldozer like in its impact. Unfortunately, in the fourth, present stage, genuine sacred art is all too often replaced by short term, series editions of posters of low artistic quality.