Vilnius University Library is showing Lithuania’s natural science history through old books, archival documents and objects from university museums and scientific collections. The exhibition is on view in P. Smuglevičius Hall, a historic space inside the library that is frequently visited by tourists in Lithuania’s capital.

The exhibition, “Historia naturalis: Natural Sciences at Vilnius University 1781–1832,” runs until 30 September 2026. Its story is closely linked to the Vilnius University Herbarium and to the work of Mindaugas Rasimavičius, a doctor of botany at the university’s Life Sciences Center, who explains why herbarium collections matter and why fields of blue lupins are not only a picturesque landscape.

Vilnius University, one of the region’s oldest higher education institutions, is using the exhibition to look back at 245 years of natural science at the university. The material returns visitors to a period when botany, zoology, medicine and other scientific fields were not yet as clearly separated as they are today.

Rasimavičius notes that Lithuania was botanically underexplored for a long time. Jean Emmanuel Gilibert, a French scientist, is often described as the first person to document Lithuanian flora. However, his “Flora Lituanica” referred to a much wider territory of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania, not only the borders of present-day Lithuania.

For the plant life of modern Lithuania, Rasimavičius points to the importance of the Jundziłł family, Stanisław Bonifacy Jundziłł and Józef Jundziłł among them, as well as Stanislovas Balys Gorskis and Johann Friedrich Wolfgang. Some of the earliest herbarium specimens were removed after Vilnius University was closed in 1832 and are now kept in Kyiv.

A herbarium is more than a store of dried leaves and flowers. In science, a specimen is evidence that a particular species grew in a particular place at a particular time. Its label must record the location, date, collector and person who identified it. These details allow researchers to reconstruct the history of plant distribution.

Especially valuable are so-called type specimens. These are plants, algae, lichens, mosses or fungi on which the first scientific description of a species was based. The Vilnius University Herbarium preserves examples described by Lithuanian and university scientists in the 19th and 20th centuries, including lady’s mantle species described by Povilas Snarskis and the pondweed hybrid Potamogeton × vilnensis studied by Vytautas Galinis.

The collections also serve fields beyond botany. Label data can be useful to linguists, ethnographers and soil researchers. Rasimavičius highlights Jurgis Ambraziejus Pabrėža, who collected herbarium specimens and recorded Lithuanian plant names, many of which are still in use.

One of the more unexpected stories from the herbarium concerns a slime mould collection once stored in cigarette packets. What began as a practical storage choice has become a small record of how scientific work was carried out in its time.

To many visitors and residents, blue lupin fields may look attractive. Rasimavičius takes a different view, calling them “biological waste” because invasive plants can change their environment in ways that favour their own spread while pushing native species out.

A natural meadow in early summer contains many colours, shapes and plant species. A dense stand of lupins often leaves one dominant colour and, later, a browning area. As native plants decline, the insects, fungi, soil microorganisms and bird habitats connected with them also decline.

The point is important for international readers who may see lupins as part of a scenic Baltic landscape. In this context, their visual appeal does not remove the ecological risk associated with invasive species.

Asked about particularly distinctive plants, Rasimavičius mentions clubmosses and horsetails. Horsetails are evolutionarily ancient plants, with representatives of the genus reaching back to the Lower Cretaceous period. Their ancestors lived millions of years ago, and relatives of horsetails, together with clubmosses and ferns, contributed to the formation of coal deposits.

For the botanist, many discoveries begin when a plant is placed under a binocular microscope or microscope. The stamens of a lingonberry flower, the red bloom of a plant, or the arrangement of cells can reveal details invisible to the naked eye. Botany becomes not only classification, but also a way of understanding how form, genetics and environment hold together in a living system.

Rasimavičius also stresses that the number of classical botanists is decreasing. Plant study requires fieldwork, seasonality and patience. A single species may be suitable for study for only a couple of weeks each year, while frost, drought or flooding can interrupt population monitoring.

“Historia naturalis: Natural Sciences at Vilnius University 1781–1832” is open in P. Smuglevičius Hall at Vilnius University Library until 30 September 2026.

Opening hours are Monday to Thursday from 9:00 to 17:00 and Friday from 9:00 to 15:45. Groups may book guided tours with the exhibition curators through the official library contact information or by phone at 0 5 268 7103.

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Šaltinio kelias

Tekstas parengtas remiantis BNS paskelbtu Vilniaus universiteto bibliotekos parodos ir VU herbariumo pristatymu.

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Patikrinta, kad paroda siejama su VU bibliotekos P. Smuglevičiaus sale.
Išlaikyti šaltinyje nurodyti lankymo laikai ir galiojimo data iki 2026 m. rugsėjo 30 d.
Eksperto teiginiai priskirti Mindaugui Rasimavičiui, kaip nurodyta pirminiame tekste.
Geografinė aprėptis nustatyta pagal parodos vietą Vilniuje, o ne pagal naujienų agentūros…

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Updated2026-07-03 10:39

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Article contextPeople & topics3#7Mindaugas RasimavičiusŽanas Emanuelis ŽiliberasJurgis Ambraziejus Pabrėža