One of the most picturesque parts of the Vilnius University is the St. John's Church and its bell tower. The construction of the Gothic style church lasted for almost 40 years and was completed in 1426. In 1571 the church was transferred to the Order of Jesuits and became a part of the university complexes.
Besides masses, the Church of Sts. Johns has also witnessed student protests, theatre performances, and welcoming ceremonies for kings. In Soviet times, it was turned into a warehouse. Later, the University Museum was established there. Today St. John's is again a Roman Catholic church. It was visited by Pope John Paul II in 1993.
The bell tower of the church, which is 68 meters high, is among the highest buildings in the Old Town. The present facade was designed in the 18th century by the most prominent Vilnius Baroque architect, Jonas Kristupas Glaubicas (Johan Christoph Glaubitz).
References:The Pilgrimage Church of Wies (Wieskirche) is an oval rococo church, designed in the late 1740s by Dominikus Zimmermann. It is located in the foothills of the Alps in the municipality of Steingaden.
The sanctuary of Wies is a pilgrimage church extraordinarily well-preserved in the beautiful setting of an Alpine valley, and is a perfect masterpiece of Rococo art and creative genius, as well as an exceptional testimony to a civilization that has disappeared.
The hamlet of Wies, in 1738, is said to have been the setting of a miracle in which tears were seen on a simple wooden figure of Christ mounted on a column that was no longer venerated by the Premonstratensian monks of the Abbey. A wooden chapel constructed in the fields housed the miraculous statue for some time. However, pilgrims from Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and even Italy became so numerous that the Abbot of the Premonstratensians of Steingaden decided to construct a splendid sanctuary.