Bernardine Cemetery

The Bernardine Cemetery (

Vilnia river. Its development was a consequence of Tsarist authorities of the Russian Empire

prohibiting burying the dead near churches. The residents of Vilnius moved the cemetery to what was then the outskirts of the city.

The Columbaria were built on the east and west sides of the cemetery. The cemetery was expanded in 1860. After the Second World War the cemetery was abandoned for the most part and began to deteriorate. It was closed in the 1970s and since then until recently it had remained almost unchanged. Many of the oldest graves had sunk into the ground and became covered in moss. The eastern columbarium had almost entirely disappeared. Restoration and reconstruction of its buildings and monuments, including the western columbarium, began in the late 1990s.

Restoration work

Beginning in 2005, on the initiative of the

Stefan Batory University

. Further renovations are planned.

Famous graves

Numerous famous scientists, painters and Vilnius University, intellectuals, professors and other renowned people are buried there including:

Helena Dzierżyńska (1849–1896), Felix Dzerzhinsky's mother
Polish-Lithuanian
artist and photographer
Polish-Lithuanian botanist and florist, professor of Vilnius University and head of the Botanical Garden

Kazimieras Kairiūkštis (1886–1918), Lithuanian engineer
Vytautas Kairiūkštis (1890–1961), Lithuanian painter
Włodzimierz Mazurkiewicz – Polish pilot and engineer
Polish-Lithuanian
mathematician and engineer
Valdas Herkus Neimantas (1966–2005),^{Užupis Republic}
Polish-Lithuanian
professor of mathematics
Antanas Ramonas (1946–1993), Lithuanian writer
Stanisław Rosołowski (1797–1855), Polish writer and doctor
Polish-Lithuanian
painter
Polish-Lithuanian
painter
Ludwik Sobolewski (1791–1830), Polish writer and historian, prefect of the Vilnius University Library
Stefan Batory University