The text describes the Church of St Peter and St Paul in the Vilnius suburb of Antokol. The church was built in 1668-1684 by Michal Pac, Hetman of Lithuania and Vilnius Voivode, according to a project by Jan Cor. The church houses, among others, two paintings by Franciszek Smuglewicz (Source: Tygodnik Illustrowany, Warsaw 1877, Series 3, T:3, pp. 312, 314, after: Digital Library of the University of Łódź).

A modernised reading of the text

Description of the interior of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Vilnius.

Among the most magnificent churches of the Lord's city of Vilnius is undoubtedly the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, rising in a charming location on the banks of the Neris River, in the suburb of Antokolė. Built between 1668 and 1684, at the expense of Michal Pac, Grand Hetman of Lithuania and Vilnius Voivode, according to a plan by Roman builder Jan Cazar, the exterior of the church is somewhat reminiscent of a Vatican church. The interior, however, is particularly impressive and refined. The taste, diligence in plaster work and "al fresco" paintings make it one of the most important churches in Lithuania, as it contains more than 2,000 figures and groups of plaster casts, decorating the church from the vault to the floor in various directions. The Italian artists Piotr Perelli from Rome and Jan Maryn Galli from Milan worked on them for seven years.

The former did the figures and heads with great care, the latter the arabesques and flowers, while the paintings and "al frescoes" are by the then famous painter Martin Altamonte, also brought from Rome. In this way, the stucco decoration against a blue background is used to decorate the beautiful Italian dome, the ceilings and the vaults of both the main nave and the presbytery. There are nine altars and two paintings by Franciszek Smuglewicz are worth seeing: the large one, painted in 1805, depicts the farewell of St Peter and St Paul, and the side one shows St Michael the Archangel. Also noteworthy are the two side altars. The right side altar contains a painting of the crucified Lord Jesus, which Hetman Pac used to have with him in camp on all his expeditions, while the left side altar contains a painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary, depicting her with arrows in both hands. Jerzy Tyszkiewicz, Bishop of Vilnius, while in Italy, took a liking to the painting and had it repainted. When he brought it to Vilnius, he placed it in the church which had previously existed here, in memory of the end of the plague in the city in 1653.

Last but not least, the church retains other ancient relics, such as a flag donated by Pope Urban VIII, two chasubles made by the founder, an oak chest which was to serve as a military treasury during the memorable expedition at Okcim, Turkish carpets decorated with images of people, birds and flowers against a blue background, also donated by Pac, and the like.