Palace and park complex of Valovich, Baroque palace complex in Sviack, Belarus.
The Palace and park complex of Valovich is a Baroque structure with symmetrical design, tall windows, and a main entrance framed by classical columns. The grounds include gardens surrounding the main building to form a complete estate.
The Valovich family, a magnate line of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, built the residence after Józef Valovich reunited the divided Sviack estates in the second half of the 18th century. Construction began in 1779 under his son Antoni, a senator of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the main works ran until about 1810. The design is attributed to the Italian architect Giuseppe de Sacco, whose transitional Baroque-Classicist manner is called Sacco classicism.
The Volovich family, who built the residence, were a magnate line of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania; in the 18th century the Grodno marshal Józef Volovich reassembled the divided Sviack estate and passed it to his son Antoni. The palace is often called the "Belarusian Versailles" in the press, and the Polish art historian Władysław Tatarkiewicz rated it one of the finest monuments of Polish classicism.
The complex sits near Sviack village and is accessible by foot or car. Wear sturdy shoes since the gardens have uneven ground and the overall grounds are sprawling.
During the 2017 restoration, builders found 15 corked bottles of 200-year-old wine buried in a small distillery building. The bottles changed colour from bluish-black to brownish-green with a golden sheen as they were lifted out; they were not opened but sent to the State Forensic Examination Committee for Grodno Region.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,477 contributors worldwide.