Amber in Lithuania

The amber is not just a mineral or a yellow stone which is considered to be a rosin of Scandinavian pine-trees for Lithuania. It is a symbol of the country in the tourist world. The word “amber” is used in the Lithuanian language for many things, such as beer, biscuits, hotels, jazz festivals and comedy films.

Things made of amber are mostly national souvenirs in Lithuania. There are a lot of shops in the country where you can buy souvenirs made of amber. For example in Vilnius there are shops of trading network Amber named “Lithuanian Souvenirs” and “The Market of Souvenirs” in Pilies. In Kaunas there are Amberline shops, in Druskeninkai there are Vindrija shops. There are Diamonds shops in Klaipeda and Kaunas and Kleismantas shops in Siauliai.

The commercial extraction of amber stopped in Lithuania at the end of the 19th century. Since 1855 till 1890 the center of commercial extraction of amber was Yodkrante. It was a fishing village that time. Now it is one of the best resort places in Lithuania.

There are two main museums of amber in Lithuania. One is in Palanga. It is situated in a wonderful palace of classical style in the center of the Botanical Garden of the city. The other is the museum of amber in Neringa. There are mostly private exhibits in this collection. The museum is situated in the house where the famous writer Thomas Mann lived.

Palanga is famous not only for its amber museum but for many jewelry shops where the beautiful things are made out of amber. The tourists can watch the process in the shops in Vitauto street, Darjaus street and Gorenko street.

A new tourist route called “Lithuanian Amber Way” has appeared recently. It includes Palanga, the villages Nida and JuodkrantÄ—, Klaipeda, the village Shrjantoyee and part of the territory of the Seaside Regional Park. Besides these the tourists can visit the museum in the village Krackley and go up to the Zhemantiysky sacrificial hill, where laymen present Gods with amber dust.