The Gates of Dawn (Aušros Vartai) are the only surviving gateway of the original city fortification wall, and one of the most important pilgrimage sites in Lithuania and Poland. The Renaissance gateway dates from the 16th century. A century later, a chapel was built above it to house a silver-clad icon of the Virgin Mary — the Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn, credited with miraculous powers and venerated by both Catholics and Eastern Orthodox believers.
Approaching the gate from Aušros Vartų Street, look up at the chapel windows before you pass through: you can see worshippers kneeling on the chapel floor above, visible from the street below. Inside the gate, a staircase leads up to the chapel itself, which is open to visitors. The icon, encased in embossed silver with only the face and hands visible, is the centre of an active pilgrimage tradition. The stop takes twenty minutes but leaves an impression.