PLACES TO VISIT

Laukžemė St. Andrew the Apostle Church

The entrance to the cozy village of Laukžemė is worthy of a postcard – after crossing the Kulšė stream valley, the graceful and wooden Church of St. Apostle Andrew opens on a small hill. The roots of its predecessors date back to the 16th century. The current one was built in 1850. However, the treasures in the church are much older. For example, the wooden sculpture of Mary with the Child, which had hung in the church narthex for many years, was found to be almost 600 years old. According to art historians, the Gothic sculpture is the oldest Lithuanian Madonna in the entire country. Another impressive exhibit in the church is the painting of Mary the Scapular. It was painted in 1729. The church is also decorated with stained glass windows made in Warsaw at the beginning of the 20th century, and the bell has been ringing in the bell tower since 1740.