The project examined the cross-crafting monuments to commemorate the anniversaries of the statehood of Lithuania. The research focused on the 10th anniversary of the restored state and the projects of wooden memorial monuments created by the artist Adomas Varnas and his students in 1928. It was revealed how in the late 19th and early 20th centuries the traditional wooden ornate cross has become a sign of national identity. The activities of the Chief Committee for the Preparation of the Festivities of the 10th Anniversary was analysed in detail. It was identified the proto-images for projects and how many monuments were built according to these projects, their iconography was discussed as well. Also it was revealed the influence of commemorative signs created during the interwar period on the development of national self-awareness. A research showed that in 1928 designed wooden memorial monuments had consolidated the image of traditional Lithuanian cross, which means abundantly decorated monument. It was discussed the effect of the 1928 campaign on the development of cross-crafting in the interwar period and later in Lithuanian exile, in the Soviet period and contemporary Lithuania, as well as the negative side of this action. These crosses built according to the projects have accelerated the process of the mixture of the regional features of monuments’ forms and ornaments.
Results: the monograph Monuments Commemorating Lithuania’s Statehood: Cross Crafting in the Interwar Period, authors Skaidrė Krikštopaitytė-Urbonienė and Skirmantė Smilingytė-Žeimienė, published in 2018. The book consists of an introduction, 3 chapters and a list (projects of wooden memorial monuments and their realization), conclusion, summary, list of sources and literature, list of illustrations, indexes of person names and place-names. The book is abundantly illustrated and consists of 368 pages.
https://www.lkti.lt/paminklai-lietuvos-valstybingumui-iamzinti-tarpukario-kryzdirbyste/
The research results were publicized in the 3 international conferences (in Germany, USA, and Lithuania) and in the public lecture in Vilnius.
