Juknaičiai – an example of modern rural architecture. The village was first mentioned in 1540. At the beginning of the 20th century, Juknaičiai consisted of several homesteads near the railway and numerous small farmsteads around it. Large homesteads closer to the Šilutė–Pagėgiai highway belonged to Blauzdžiai village. Once a small, somewhat forgotten settlement in Western Lithuania, Juknaičiai had become an almost ideal model of a rural town.
From 1964, under efficient collective farm management, the village was transformed into a remarkably well-organized settlement, judged by the standards of that time. Here, one can observe reflections of the “garden city” concept—the rich landscape of the village was designed by architects Rūta and Alfonsas Kiškiai. As early as the 1960s, Juknaičiai’s infrastructure exceeded even urban expectations. Apartment buildings, often disliked in villages, were given a playful regionalist touch. The settlement was enriched with tree groves, ornamental shrubs, flower gardens, lawns, and decorative sculptures. A “Grove of Hopes” was planted in the village park, where parents of newborns would plant oaks and lindens. In 1996, the Šilutė district municipality granted Juknaičiai the status of a park settlement, and its landscape was declared protected.
Juknaičiai boasts many artistic accents. The symbol of the settlement became sculptor S. Kuzma’s wooden sculpture of a falcon perched on a horse’s back. The horse symbolized agricultural work, while the falcon represented spiritual aspirations and artistic creativity. Other sculptures by Kuzma include “Eglė and Žilvinas”, “Flame of Friendship”, and “Motherhood”.
Near Juknaičiai, in Vyžiai village, stands the beautiful Vyžiai Evangelical Lutheran Church, built in 1865. The church is rectangular, built in Gothic-Romanesque style, featuring a single tower, a five-sided apse, and 16-register resonant organ pipes. Its 36-meter-high massive tower once housed two bronze bells. The church was damaged during the war and later converted into a grain warehouse. In 1993, it was returned to the Lutheran community and has since been restored and reopened.
On the outskirts of the village stands Juknaičiai Alkos Hill. In 2012, an amphitheater was built, further enriching the beauty of Juknaičiai.