The publications of the National Museum of Lithuania have received significant awards in national and international book competitions this year. The works of the museum’s authors have been nominated in the “Book of the Year” competition, have received three nominations from the Lithuanian branch of the International Board on Books for Children and Youth (IBBY), and have been awarded in the Book Art Competition organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania.

Evaluation of the Children’s Book “History Wags Its Tail”

The children’s book “History Wags Its Tail: Short Stories about the Long Friendship between Man and Dog in Lithuania” by Sigita Mikšaitė and illustrator Reda Tomingas has been nominated in the “Book of the Year” competition in the children’s book category. You can vote here: link

The book was also nominated in three categories of the Lithuanian branch of the International Board on Books for Children and Youth (IBBY), the winners of which will be announced on International Children’s Book Day:

• Prizes for the best educational book
• Domicėla Tarabildienė prize for the most beautifully illustrated book for children
• Aldona Liobytė prize for the most significant children’s literary debut

The publication invites readers to look at the long-standing friendship between man and dog in Lithuania. It is incredible that a wild animal that existed thousands of years ago has become a person’s indispensable collaborator and most loyal friend. The book tells the stories of dogs that lived in different historical periods – about their joys, sorrows and everyday life.

All stories are based on true facts: some dogs are mentioned in historical chronicles or in the press, so their names and details of their lives are known – like Sigismund Augustus’s favorite Grifas or writer Vaižgantas’ mischievous Kaukas. The names of others have not survived in history, but their traces can be found in archaeological finds, old photographs or the stories of their hosts. This is a sensitive, cognitive and visually expressive story about friendship that accompanies a person through the ages.

Book Art Competition Evaluations

In the Book Art Competition organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, a diploma was awarded for Simona Širvydaitė-Šliupienė’s book “A Soul Between Worlds: The Ainu Nation in the North of Japan and the Ethnographer Bronisław Pilsudskis”. The award is dedicated to the book’s artist Justina Brukštute-Šimke, illustrator Reda Tomingas, the National Museum of Lithuania and the printing house “Petro ofsetas”.

This book invites you to embark on a journey through the snowy forests of Hokkaido, Japan, and the mysterious world of kamuy together with an eight-year-old Ainu girl, Paykar. Through her story, readers get acquainted with the Ainu traditions, crafts, music and worldview, learn how the Ainu language has survived and how their songs resemble Lithuanian “sutartinės”. The publication also introduces an exceptional personality – Bronisław Pilsudskis, who photographed the Ainu more than a hundred years ago, recorded their voices and conveyed their stories to the world.

In the same competition, a prize was also awarded to Arūnas Baltėnas’ publication “P–S. From Monday to Sunday”. The award was presented to the book’s artist Aleksejs Muraško, “Baltėnas Archives”, the Lithuanian National Museum and the printing house “Jelgavas Tipogrāfija”.

The National Museum of Lithuania, together with “Baltėnas Archives”, presents a portrait of today’s working Lithuania in this photographic book. The publication records more than a hundred professions – from microsurgeon or jazz musician to seamstress, digger or trolleybus driver. Each portrait is accompanied by a short first-person narrative, which gives the book intimacy and authenticity.

This is not only a panorama of professions, but also a living document of everyday life, testifying to our time for future generations. The documentary nature of black and white photographs here acquires lasting value – the work environment, technologies or posture recognizable today will become an important sign of the times in the future.

Publishing at the National Museum of Lithuania – A Long Tradition and an Ongoing Field of Research

These assessments once again confirm the consistency of the publishing direction of the National Museum of Lithuania, the relevance of the content and the exceptional attention to artistic and printing quality.

The National Museum of Lithuania has the oldest publishing traditions of all of Lithuania’s museums, and also preserves one of the most significant and richest collections in Lithuania, covering archaeology, ethnography, iconography, history, numismatics and other fields. Through publications, these collections become accessible to a wider public – books allow us to present objects, research and stories stored in the repositories, giving them a broader cultural context.

The largest and most important part of the museum’s publishing work today is the publication of scientific and informational material about the collections, the preparation of exhibition books, the dissemination of research results and the popularization of history.

In recent years, the museum has also purposefully developed in the publishing of books for children. These publications become the a acquaintance with history – alive, told in an understandable way, but maintaining scientific accuracy. Through books for children, the museum seeks to interest young readers in the past of Lithuania, develop curiosity and critical thinking, and show that history can be familiar, interesting and relevant. This year’s nominations and awards show that the chosen direction makes sense – the professional assessment testifies not only to the high artistic and content quality, but also to the museum’s successful effort to talk about history to various audiences.

A distinctive feature of the museum’s publications is their timeless content, often remaining relevant even after decades, and special attention to printing quality. Durable paper, carefully considered design, and when necessary, hardcovers and high-quality printing ensure that the publications are not only a source of information, but also long-lasting cultural objects.

This year’s nominations and awards naturally fit into this long and consistent publishing tradition, testifying that the museum’s publishing activities remain alive, relevant and appreciated both in the professional community and in the eyes of the general public.