[5] The district has been popular with artists for some time,[6][7] and has been compared to Montmartre in Paris and to Freetown Christiania in Copenhagen,[8][7] due to its bohemian and laissez-faire atmosphere.

[11] The houses left abandoned were later occupied by marginal elements of society, mainly the homeless, prostitutes and squatters.

On 1 April 1997, a group of local artists declared the Republic of Užupis, along with its own flag, unofficial currency, president, cabinet of ministers, a constitution written by Romas Lileikis and Tomas Čepaitis, an anthem, and an army of approximately 11 men.

[17] Užupis does not house internet-cafes, markets, shopping malls, or governmental institutions (except Užupian), and there is no embassy to Lithuania.

The colour of the palm emblem changes seasonally, in the sequence blue (Winter), green (Spring), yellow (Summer), and red (Autumn).

[20] The Embassy of the Republic of Užupis to Munich builds bridges between arts and AI technology to make artificial intelligence more ethical and more accessible to society.

[21] Well-known ambassadors include the experimental filmmaker Jonas Mekas, the art critic Konstyantyn Doroshenko, and the designer Dr. Nelly Ben Hayoun.

Representatives of the Republic of Užupis have met with the President and Foreign Minister of Liberland to discuss mutual recognition.

[citation needed] Minister of Foreign Affairs Thomas Chepaitis, Ambassador H. E. Max Haarich, AI-Expert Alex Waldmann and humanoid Roboy formulated an additional article for the Munich Embassy: "Any artificial intelligence has the right to believe in a good will of humanity.

The idea was developed from a desire to erect an angel in memory of animator and caricaturist Zenonas Šteinys.

[9] After being replaced by the larger statue of Gabriel, the egg was sold at an auction for 10,200 litas and now stands on Pylimo street.