Samogitian Alka

When visiting Šventoji, be sure to visit the Samogitian Alka, located on a dune near the Energetikas health center at the end of Jonpaparčio Street. This is a pagan sanctuary with a paleoastronomical observatory, rebuilt in 1998, which stood on Birutė Hill in Palanga in the 15th century. During the reconstruction of the pagan sanctuary, wooden pillars carved by folk artists were erected in the Samogitian Alka, each bearing the name of a god or goddess from Baltic mythology:
Perkūnas, Aušrinė, Žemyna, Austėja, Ondenis, Patrimpas, Patulas, Velnias, Leda, Saulė, and Mėnulis.
As the sun sets into the sea, the arrangement of the shadows cast by the pillars can be used to calculate the calendar holidays that have come down from pagan times. Nowadays, pagan festivals are celebrated here.
Žemaičių alkas is a structure on a dune with religious and astronomical significance, consisting of 12 oak pillars. The pillars of the alkas are positioned so that the shadows cast by the sun can be used to determine the Baltic calendar holidays. They were created based on an original 2-meter-high wooden pillar with a mask of a goddess with owl features carved into it, discovered during the archaeological expeditions of Dr. Rimutė Rimantienė. This structure was erected on the dune in 1998 by the Palanga branch of the Samogitian Cultural Society, based on research data from a medieval (14th-15th century) observatory discovered by archaeologists on Birutė Hill in Palanga. The pillars, carved by folk artists and creatively associated with Baltic gods, are dedicated to Perkūnas, Aušrinė, Žemyna, Austėja, Ondenius, Patrimpas, Patulas, Velinas, and Lada. Twelve oak pillars were erected on the dune based on research conducted by Klaipėda University professor and archaeologist Vladas Žulkus on Birutė Hill. They are arranged so that when the sun sets over the sea, the shadows cast by the pillars can be used to determine the dates of the main calendar holidays – Rasas, Gandro Day, Užgavėnes, Christmas, etc. Pagan festivals are held here by enthusiasts of ancient Baltic culture and religion, celebrating the goddesses Milda (May 13), Rasos (June 22), and Lygiadienis (March 22). The Jorė festival (April 23) is called the festival of pagan celebrations in Palanga, which attracts attention with its rituals and ceremonies (during which amber dust is sacrificed by throwing it into a bonfire and wishing for something good or expressing one’s deepest desires). The Samogitian altar in Šventoji is located on a dune surrounded by beautiful scenery. It is believed that a wooden church of the Elija settlement once stood on the site of the Samogitian altar. By order of Kęsgaila, the church was moved to Birutė Hill.
Members of the Palanga branch of the Samogitian Society, who built this altar in 1998 (sculpture architect S. Manomaitis), celebrate pagan holidays here.