Palanga Amber Museum, Palanga, Lithuania

The Palanga Amber Museum houses a collection of amber comprising about 28,000 pieces, of which about 15,000 contain inclusions of insects, spiders, or plants. About 4,500 pieces of amber are exhibited; many of these are items of artwork and jewelry. Amber workshops appeared in Palanga during the 17th century; guilds devoted to the material functioned in Brügge, Lübeck, Danzig, and Königsberg. By the end of the 18th century Palanga was the center of the Russian Empire's amber industry. In the years preceding World War I about 2,000 kilograms of raw amber were processed in Palanga annually.

The exhibition areas open to the public include 15 rooms covering about 750 square meters. A chapel connected to the palace houses temporary exhibitions. The museum is thematically divided into the scientific and cultural/artistic aspects of amber.

The museum is located to Tiškevičiai Palace, a Neo-Renaissance style palace built in 1893-1897. The palace is surrounded by a park with ponds, fountains, and collections of rare plants. The palace is surrounded by the Palanga Botanical Garden.

References:

Wikipedia

Museums in Lithuania

Address

Vytauto gatvė 19, Palanga, Lithuania

See all sites in Palanga

Details

Founded: 1963
Category: Museums in Lithuania

More Information

en.wikipedia.org
en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Sventoji (13,3 km)
Kretinga Museum (12 km)
Kretinga Monastery (11,8 km)
Klaipeda Castle Ruins (22,8 km)
Grobina Burial Ground (46 km)

User Reviews

Tom Z (38 days ago)
If in Lithuania, this is a Must Visit! Incredible collection of amber you will not see anywhere else. You can buy some of your own (real) amber at their gift shop

Nataliya Grydasova (5 months ago)
Lovely park around, impressive collection of amber. There are magnifying glasses to see the inclusions. Unfortunately, there weren't enough audio guides, which could make the experience even better.

Paul B (6 months ago)
Nice museum in a restored manor house that belonged to Baron Tiškevičius. Several floors of exhibition, rare amber with inclusions, a working gift shot, manicured gardens, a gift shop and very clean toilets. Well worth visiting.

BeautifulYouTVRUS (6 months ago)
Palanga Amber Museum is one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited! The museum is surrounded by a picturesque park with lots of water ponds, bridges, flower beds and a fountain. The museum itself is a great destination for a family visit! Some nice amber souvenirs can also be bought in the museum shop!

Andrew Pidduck (7 months ago)
This museum is located inside a beautiful estate. The mansion itself is a beautiful work of art. The museum does a tremendous job teaching about the creation and history of amber and its collection process. I was amazed to see the rare pieces they had on display such as a lizard inside amber and a colony of mating insects inside amber. The admission is cheap and the experience is great. I highly recommend this for a day trip.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Guido Rudolph

Historic Site of the week

Lübeck Cathedral

Lübeck Cathedral is a large brick-built Lutheran cathedral in Lübeck, Germany and part of the Lübeck UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1173 Henry the Lion founded the cathedral to serve the Diocese of Lübeck, after the transfer in 1160 of the bishop's seat from Oldenburg in Holstein under bishop Gerold. The then Romanesque cathedral was completed around 1230, but between 1266 and 1335 it was converted into a Gothic-style building with side-aisles raised to the same height as the main aisle.

On the night of Palm Sunday (28–29 March) 1942 a Royal Air Force bombing raid destroyed a fifth of the town centre. Several bombs fell in the area around the church, causing the eastern vault of the quire to collapse and destroying the altar which dated from 1696. A fire from the neighbouring cathedral museum spread to the truss of the cathedral, and around noon on Palm Sunday the towers collapsed. An Arp Schnitger organ was lost in the flames. Nevertheless, a relatively large portion of the internal fittings was saved, including the cross and almost all of the medieval polyptychs. In 1946 a further collapse, of the gable of the north transept, destroyed the vestibule almost completely.

Reconstruction of the cathedral took several decades, as greater priority was given to the rebuilding of the Marienkirche. Work was completed only in 1982.

The cathedral is unique in that at 105 m, it is shorter than the tallest church in the city. This is the consequence of a power struggle between the church and the guilds.

The 17 m crucifix is the work of the Lübeck artist Bernt Notke. It was commissioned by the bishop of Lübeck, Albert II. Krummendiek, and erected in 1477. The carvings which decorate the rood screen are also by Notke.

Since the war, the famous altar of Hans Memling has been in the medieval collection of the St. Annen Museum, but notable polyptychs remain in the cathedral.

In the funeral chapels of the southern aisle are Baroque-era memorials by the Flemish sculptor Thomas Quellinus.

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Palanga Amber Museum