Sculpture – ex-libris for the national poet Maironis

In autumn of 2018, a sculpture – ex-libris dedicated to the memory of the poet Maironis was unveiled at Tauragė “Versmė” gymnasium (10 J. Tumo-Vaižganto St.). The author of the ex-libris is a Tauragė blacksmith Kęstutis Plyskaitis. He created the work based on his grandfather’s favorite poem “We will start a new song” (Maironis).

The sculpture that decorates the city was created by implementing the idea of ​​the honorary citizen of Tauragė, sculptor Regimantas Midvikis, to decorate public spaces with unique works. The production of the work was initiated by the Birutė Baltrušaitytė Public Library of Tauragė district municipality, taking into account the fact that the work was created on the motifs of the work of the famous poet Jonas Mačiulis-Maironis.

Jonas Mačiulis (Maciulevičius) – Maironis, a Lithuanian poet, a Catholic priest, a teacher and a rector of the Kaunas Seminary, a professor of the St. Petersburg Spiritual Academy, and since 1903 – a doctor of theology,  was born on November 2, 1862 in Pasandravis estate, Šiluva state, Raseiniai county; died on June 28, 1932, and is buried in the crypt of Kaunas Arch-cathedral Basilica.

The most significant part of Maironis’s work is the lyrics. The first collection of poems “Voices of Spring” (1895) is considered a manifesto of the rebirth of the nation and the beginning of modern Lithuanian poetry. Maironis created the lyrical poem genre in Lithuanian literature wrote dramas, works on historical theology, history of literature and reviews.