The exhibition of Lithuanian archaeology “Prehistory of Lithuania” contains more than 4,000 archaeological finds. These are unique examples of Baltic culture representing the culture of Lithuania from the appearance of the first residents in the territory of Lithuania in the 11th millennium B.C. to the formation of the Lithuanian state in the 13th century. In the first exhibition hall, “Lithuania Before Christ”, the earliest finds from the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Ages introduce work tools and weapons of the first inhabitants of Lithuania. Archaeological materials of the Neolithic Age related to hunting, household economy, fishing, early agriculture, art and religion are exhibited.
Impressive ceramics of the Baltic coastal culture from the Nida settlement represent the Late Neolithic period. Maps of the spread of the Baltic coastal culture and Baltic place names show the history of the formation of Baltic culture. The first imported metal artefacts of the Bronze Age and urns from funerary monuments of the Early Iron Age are exhibited. The second exhibition hall, “Lithuania Before the Formation of the State”, addresses the history of the period after Christ that lasted more than a thousand years.
The development of household conditions and lifestyle from the 1st to the 13th century is represented under the following headings: Exchange and Trade, Agriculture, Metallurgy, Weaponry, Horse and Rider, Spinning and Weaving, and Ceramics. The ethnic history of the Lithuanian nation is told through archaeological finds and the change of funerary customs of separate Baltic tribes: Lithuanians, Yotvingians-Sudovians, Aukštaitians, Selonians, Semigallians, Samogitians, Scalvians, Lamatians and Curonians. Reconstructions of clothing constitute a separate part of the exhibition.