The Vilnius Gaon State Jewish Museum, which is widely known throughout the world, is also interesting to our society with its expositions and activities. The Vilnius Gaon State Jewish Museum is the only Jewish museum in Lithuania. It exhibits works of Lithuanian Jewish art and historical expositions related to Jewish history and the Holocaust. The Museum as an institution fostering Jewish culture and traditions in Lithuania has a long tradition.

The Museum was founded by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania in 1989. In the beginning it was called the State Jewish Museum and later renamed to the Vilnius Gaon State Jewish Museum, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the death of Vilnius Gaon.

The Philharmonic Hall has been operating in the building since 1910. It was used for concerts, cultural and social activities. 1920-1932 Vilnius residents knew this “Philharmonic” as the center of Makabi’s sports gymnastics, but the hall was also used for social cultural events of the Jewish community. The building was reconstructed to accommodate today’s museum needs in 2001.

Sources:

1. http://www.jmuseum.lt