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{{Short description|Historical trade route in Europe}}
{{Short description|Historical trade route in Europe}}
{{Use Oxford spelling |date=March 2025}}
{{Use Oxford spelling |date=March 2026}}
{{Use dmy dates |date=March 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2026}}
[[File:Amber Road.jpg|thumb|250px|The Amber Road (east route), as hypothesized by Polish historian Jerzy Wielowiejski, {{lang |pl |Główny szlak bursztynowy w czasach Cesarstwa Rzymskiego}} ({{translation |Main Route of the Amber Road of the Roman Empire}}), 1980]]
[[File:Baltis amber road.jpg|thumb|The ancient route from the [[Baltic Sea]] to the areas of the [[Roman Empire]] by the [[Mediterranean Sea]]]]
[[File:Baltis amber road.jpg|thumb|The route from the Baltic Sea]]
[[Image:Amber sources in Europe.jpg|thumb|Amber deposits in Europe]]
 
The '''Amber Road''' was an ancient [[trade route]] for the transfer of [[amber]] from coastal areas of the [[North Sea]] and the [[Baltic Sea]] to the [[Mediterranean Sea]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.academia.edu/241848 |title=Graciela Gestoso Singer, "Amber in the Ancient Near East", ''i-Medjat'' No. 2 (December 2008). Papyrus Electronique des Ankou |last1=Singer |first1=Graciela Gestoso}}</ref> Prehistoric trade routes between Northern and Southern Europe were defined by the amber trade.


The '''Amber Road''' was an ancient [[trade route]] for the transfer of [[amber]] from coastal areas of the [[North Sea]] and the [[Baltic Sea]] to the [[Mediterranean Sea]].<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.academia.edu/241848| title = Graciela Gestoso Singer, "Amber in the Ancient Near East", ''i-Medjat'' No. 2 (December 2008). Papyrus Electronique des Ankou.| last1 = Singer| first1 = Graciela Gestoso}}</ref> Prehistoric trade routes between Northern and Southern Europe were defined by the amber trade.
As an important commodity, sometimes dubbed "the gold of the north", amber was transported from the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts overland by way of the [[Vistula]] and [[Dnieper River|Dnieper]] rivers to [[Italy]], [[Greece]], the [[Black Sea]], [[Syria]] and [[Egypt]] over a period of thousands of years.


As an important commodity, sometimes dubbed "the gold of the north", amber was transported from the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts overland by way of the [[Vistula]] and [[Dnieper River|Dnieper]] rivers to [[Italy]], [[Greece]], the [[Black Sea]], [[Syria]] and [[Egypt]] over a period of thousands of years.
The route developed into an important trading and military route for the Roman Empire, and also formed the basis of several present-day transport routes.<ref name=Bernstein>{{cite web |title=The Roman Amber Road from the Adriatic to the Danube region |url=https://bernsteinstrasse-burgenland.at/en/the-roman-amber-road-from-the-adriatic-to-the-danube-region/ |publisher=Verein zur Erhaltung der Römischen Bernsteinstraße |access-date=30 March 2026}}</ref>


==Antiquity==
==Antiquity==
The oldest trade in amber started from [[Sicily]]. The Sicilian amber trade was directed to Greece, North Africa and Spain. Sicilian amber was also discovered in [[Mycenae]] by the archaeologist [[Heinrich Schliemann]], and it appeared in sites in southern Spain and Portugal. Its distribution is similar to that of ivory, so it is possible that amber from Sicily reached the [[Iberian Peninsula]] through contacts with North Africa. After a decline in the consumption and trade of amber at the beginning of the [[Bronze Age]], around 2000 BC, the influence of Baltic amber gradually took the place of Sicilian amber throughout the Iberian Peninsula from around 1000 BC. The new evidence{{which |date=March 2025}} comes from various archaeological and geological locations on the Iberian Peninsula.{{citation needed |date=June 2024}}
The oldest trade in amber started from [[Sicily]]. The Sicilian amber trade was directed to Greece, North Africa and Spain. Sicilian amber was also discovered in [[Mycenae]] by the archaeologist [[Heinrich Schliemann]], and it appeared in sites in southern Spain and Portugal. Its distribution is similar to that of ivory, so it is possible that amber from Sicily reached the [[Iberian Peninsula]] through contacts with North Africa. After a decline in the consumption and trade of amber at the beginning of the [[Bronze Age]], around 2000 BC, the influence of Baltic amber gradually took the place of Sicilian amber throughout the Iberian Peninsula from around 1000 BC. The new evidence{{which |date=March 2025}} comes from various archaeological and geological locations on the Iberian Peninsula.{{citation needed |date=June 2024}}


From at least the 16th century BC, amber was moved from Northern Europe to the Mediterranean area.<ref>{{cite journal |first=J.M. |last=de&nbsp;Navarro |date=December 1925 |title=Prehistoric routes between northern Europe and Italy defined by the amber trade |journal=The Geographical Journal |volume=66 |issue=6 |pages=481–503 |doi=10.2307/1783003 |jstor=1783003|bibcode=1925GeogJ..66..481D }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NAwGLzAfyhEC |via=Google Books |first=Anthony F. |last=Harding |year=2001 |section=Reformation and barbarism in Europe, 1300–600&nbsp;BC |editor-first=Barry W. |editor-last=Cunliffe |editor-link=Barry Cunliffe |title=Oxford Illustrated History of Prehistoric Europe |place=Oxford, UK |publisher=Oxford U. Press |isbn=978-0-19-285441-4}}</ref> The breast ornament of the Egyptian Pharaoh [[Tutankhamen]] ({{Circa|1333–1324}} BC) contains large Baltic amber beads.<ref>{{cite book |last=Reeves |first=C.N. |year=1990 |title=The Complete Tutankhamun: The king, the tomb, the royal treasure |place=London, UK |publisher=[[Thames & Hudson]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Serpico |first1=M. |last2=White |first2=R. |year=2000 |section=Resins, amber, and bitumen |editor1=Nicholson, P.T. |editor2=Shaw, I. |title=Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology |place=Cambridge, UK |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |at=Part&nbsp;II, chapter&nbsp;18, pp&nbsp;430–475, esp. 451–454}} as cited by Gestoso Singer</ref><ref>{{cite conference |last=Hood |first=S. |year=1990 |title=Amber in Egypt |editor1=Beck, C.W. |editor2=Bouzek, J. |book-title=Amber in Archaeology |conference=Second International Conference on Amber in Archaeology |place=Liblice, PL |series=Institute of Archaeology |pages=230–235 |publication-place=Prague, PL |publisher=Czech Academy of Sciences}}</ref> Schliemann found Baltic amber beads at Mycenae, as shown by [[Spectroscopy|spectroscopic]] investigation.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Curt W. |last1=Beck |first2=Gretchen C. |last2=Southard |first3=Audrey B. |last3=Adams |date=1972-12-15 |df=dmy-all |title=Analysis and provenience of Minoan and Mycenaean amber, {{grey|[part]}}&nbsp;IV Mycenae |journal=Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies |volume=13 |issue=4 |pages=359–385 |issn=2159-3159 |url=http://grbs.library.duke.edu/article/download/9401/4541 |via=[[Duke University]] |access-date=2023-08-04 }}</ref> The quantity of amber in the [[Royal Hypogeum of Qatna]], in Syria, is unparalleled among known second millennium BC sites in the [[Levant]] and the [[Ancient Near East]].<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Anna J. |last1=Mukherjee |display-authors=etal |year=2008 |title=The Qatna lion: Scientific confirmation of Baltic amber in late Bronze Age Syria |journal=Antiquity |volume=82 |issue=315 |pages=49–59 |doi=10.1017/S0003598X00096435 |url=http://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/propylaeumdok/892/1/Pfaelzner_Qatna_lion_2008.pdf}}</ref> Amber was sent from the North Sea to the [[Temple of Apollo (Delphi)|Temple of Apollo]] at [[Delphi]] as an offering. From the [[Black Sea]], trade could continue to Asia along the [[Silk Road]], another ancient trade route.
From at least the 16th century BC, amber was moved from Northern Europe to the Mediterranean area.<ref>{{cite journal |first=J.M. |last=de&nbsp;Navarro |date=December 1925 |title=Prehistoric routes between northern Europe and Italy defined by the amber trade |journal=The Geographical Journal |volume=66 |issue=6 |pages=481–503 |doi=10.2307/1783003 |jstor=1783003|bibcode=1925GeogJ..66..481D }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NAwGLzAfyhEC |via=Google Books |first=Anthony F. |last=Harding |year=2001 |section=Reformation and barbarism in Europe, 1300–600&nbsp;BC |editor-first=Barry W. |editor-last=Cunliffe |editor-link=Barry Cunliffe |title=Oxford Illustrated History of Prehistoric Europe |place=Oxford, UK |publisher=Oxford U. Press |isbn=978-0-19-285441-4}}</ref> The breast ornament of the Egyptian Pharaoh [[Tutankhamen]] ({{Circa|1333–1324}} BC) contains large Baltic amber beads.<ref>{{cite book |last=Reeves |first=C. N. |year=1990 |title=The Complete Tutankhamun: The king, the tomb, the royal treasure |place=London, UK |publisher=[[Thames & Hudson]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Serpico |first1=M. |last2=White |first2=R. |year=2000 |section=Resins, amber, and bitumen |editor1=Nicholson, P.T. |editor2=Shaw, I. |title=Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology |place=Cambridge, UK |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |at=Part&nbsp;II, chapter&nbsp;18, pp&nbsp;430–475, esp. 451–454}} as cited by Gestoso Singer</ref><ref>{{cite conference |last=Hood |first=S. |year=1990 |title=Amber in Egypt |editor1=Beck, C.W. |editor2=Bouzek, J. |book-title=Amber in Archaeology |conference=Second International Conference on Amber in Archaeology |place=Liblice, PL |series=Institute of Archaeology |pages=230–235 |publication-place=Prague, PL |publisher=Czech Academy of Sciences}}</ref> Schliemann found Baltic amber beads at Mycenae, as shown by [[Spectroscopy|spectroscopic]] investigation.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Curt W. |last1=Beck |first2=Gretchen C. |last2=Southard |first3=Audrey B. |last3=Adams |date=15 December 1972 |title=Analysis and provenience of Minoan and Mycenaean amber, {{grey|[part]}}&nbsp;IV Mycenae |journal=Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies |volume=13 |issue=4 |pages=359–385 |issn=2159-3159 |url=http://grbs.library.duke.edu/article/download/9401/4541 |via=[[Duke University]] |access-date=4 August 2023 }}</ref> The quantity of amber in the [[Royal Hypogeum of Qatna]], in Syria, is unparalleled among known second millennium BC sites in the [[Levant]] and the [[Ancient Near East]].<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Anna J. |last1=Mukherjee |display-authors=etal |year=2008 |title=The Qatna lion: Scientific confirmation of Baltic amber in late Bronze Age Syria |journal=Antiquity |volume=82 |issue=315 |pages=49–59 |doi=10.1017/S0003598X00096435 |url=http://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/propylaeumdok/892/1/Pfaelzner_Qatna_lion_2008.pdf}}</ref> Amber was sent from the North Sea to the [[Temple of Apollo (Delphi)|Temple of Apollo]] at [[Delphi]] as an offering. From the [[Black Sea]], trade could continue to Asia along the [[Silk Road]], another ancient trade route.


In [[Roman Empire|Roman]] times, a main route ran south from the Baltic coast (modern [[Lithuania]]), the entire north–south length of modern-day Poland (likely through the [[Iron Age]] settlement of [[Biskupin]]), through the land of the [[Boii]] (modern [[Czech Republic]] and [[Slovakia]]) to the head of the [[Adriatic Sea]] ([[Aquileia]] by the modern [[Gulf of Venice]]). Other commodities were exported to the Romans along with amber, such as [[Fur trade|animal fur]] and skin, honey, and wax, in exchange for [[Roman glass]], [[brass]], [[gold]], and [[non-ferrous metals]] such as [[tin]] and [[copper]] imported into the early Baltic region.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Jovaiša |first=E. |authorlink=Eugenijus Jovaiša|year=2001 |title=The Balts and amber |journal=Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis |volume=22 |pages=149–156 |url=https://etalpykla.lituanistikadb.lt/object/LT-LDB-0001:J.04~2001~1367162393242/J.04~2001~1367162393242.pdf}}</ref> As this road was a lucrative trade route connecting the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, Roman military fortifications were constructed along the route to protect merchants and traders from Germanic raids.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Schachinger |first=Ursula |year=2020 |title=The coin finds from the survey and the excavation in Strebersdorf (Burgenland, Austria) on the Amber Road (2008–2017) |journal=Vjesnik Arheološkog muzeja u Zagrebu |volume=53 |issue=1 |pages=123–159 |url=https://hrcak.srce.hr/file/357168 |access-date=2023-08-04 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>
In [[Roman Empire|Roman]] times, a main route ran south from the Baltic coast (modern [[Lithuania]]), the entire north–south length of modern-day Poland (likely through the [[Iron Age]] settlement of [[Biskupin]]), through the land of the [[Boii]] (modern [[Czech Republic]] and [[Slovakia]]) to the head of the [[Adriatic Sea]] ([[Aquileia]] by the modern [[Gulf of Venice]]). Other commodities were exported to the Romans along with amber, such as [[Fur trade|animal fur]] and skin, honey, and wax, in exchange for [[Roman glass]], [[brass]], [[gold]], and [[non-ferrous metals]] such as [[tin]] and [[copper]] imported into the early Baltic region.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Jovaiša |first=E. |authorlink=Eugenijus Jovaiša|year=2001 |title=The Balts and amber |journal=Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis |volume=22 |pages=149–156 |url=https://etalpykla.lituanistikadb.lt/object/LT-LDB-0001:J.04~2001~1367162393242/J.04~2001~1367162393242.pdf}}</ref> As this road was a lucrative trade route connecting the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, Roman military fortifications were constructed along the route to protect merchants and traders from Germanic raids.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Schachinger |first=Ursula |year=2020 |title=The coin finds from the survey and the excavation in Strebersdorf (Burgenland, Austria) on the Amber Road (2008–2017) |journal=Vjesnik Arheološkog muzeja u Zagrebu |volume=53 |issue=1 |pages=123–159 |url=https://hrcak.srce.hr/file/357168 |access-date=4 August 2023}}</ref>


The [[Old Prussians|Old Prussian]] towns of [[Kaup (emporium)|Kaup]] and [[Truso]] on the Baltic were the starting points of the route to the south.<ref>{{cite web |title=Latitude:&nbsp;54°.2667N, Longitude:&nbsp;19°.2636E |department=GPS coordinates of Truso, Poland |website=Latitude.to |url=https://latitude.to/articles-by-country/pl/poland/58615/truso |access-date=2020-09-13 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=Jones>{{cite book |first=Gwyn |last=Jones |year=2001 |title=A History of the Vikings |publisher=Oxford University Press |place=Oxford, UK |isbn=0-19-280134-1 |page=167}}</ref> In [[Scandinavia]] the amber road probably gave rise to the thriving [[Nordic Bronze Age]] culture, bringing influences from the Mediterranean Sea to the northernmost countries of Europe.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Kristian |last1=Kristiansen |first2=Paulina |last2=Suchowska-Ducke |year=2015 |title=Connected Histories: The dynamics of Bronze Age interaction and trade 1500–1100&nbsp;{{sc|BC}} |journal=Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society |volume=81 |pages=361–392 |doi=10.1017/ppr.2015.17 |doi-access=free }}</ref> [[Kaliningrad Oblast]] is occasionally referred to in Russian as 'the amber region' ({{lang|ru|Янтарный край}}).<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Billock |first=Jennifer |date=28 August 2019 |title=Follow the ancient Amber Road |department=Travel |magazine=Smithsonian Magazine |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/follow-ancient-amber-road-180970609/ |access-date=2020-09-13 |lang=en}}</ref>
The [[Old Prussians|Old Prussian]] towns of [[Kaup (emporium)|Kaup]] and [[Truso]] on the Baltic were the starting points of the route to the south.<ref>{{cite web |title=Latitude:&nbsp;54°.2667N, Longitude:&nbsp;19°.2636E |department=GPS coordinates of Truso, Poland |website=Latitude.to |url=https://latitude.to/articles-by-country/pl/poland/58615/truso |access-date=13 September 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=Jones>{{cite book |first=Gwyn |last=Jones |year=2001 |title=A History of the Vikings |publisher=Oxford University Press |place=Oxford, UK |isbn=0-19-280134-1 |page=167}}</ref> In [[Scandinavia]] the amber road probably gave rise to the thriving [[Nordic Bronze Age]] culture, bringing influences from the Mediterranean Sea to the northernmost countries of Europe.<ref name=PHS>{{cite journal |first1=Kristian |last1=Kristiansen |first2=Paulina |last2=Suchowska-Ducke |year=2015 |title=Connected Histories: The dynamics of Bronze Age interaction and trade 1500–1100&nbsp;BC |journal=Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society |volume=81 |pages=361–392 |doi=10.1017/ppr.2015.17 |doi-access=free }}</ref>  


{{further |Kaliningrad Regional Amber Museum}}
Whilst called the Amber Road, the prized gemstone was the smallest share of goods transported along the route.<ref name=Bernstein />


==Known roads by country==
==Known roads by country==
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{{More citations needed section|date=January 2008}}
{{More citations needed section|date=January 2008}}
}}
}}
[[Image:Amber sources in Europe.jpg|thumb|Amber deposits in Europe]]
<!-- Alphabetical by country -->
[[EV9 The Amber Route]] is a long-distance cycling route between Gdańsk, Poland, and [[Pula]], Croatia, which follows the course of the Amber Road.
 
=== Austria ===
 
Near the villages of [[Petronell-Carnuntum]] and [[Bad Deutsch-Altenburg]], the Roman ruins of [[Carnuntum]] mark a major trading site of the Amber Road and also the [[Danubian Limes|Limes Road]].<ref name=Smithsonian /><ref name=Bernstein />
 
===Belgium===
 
A small section led southwards from [[Antwerp]] and [[Bruges]] to the towns [[Braine-l'Alleud]] and [[Braine-le-Comte]], both originally named "Brennia-Brenna".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Northrup |display-authors=etal |first1=Cynthia |title=Encyclopedia of World Trade: From Ancient Times to the Present |volume=1 |date=2015 |publisher=Routledge |page=30}}</ref> The route continued by following the [[Meuse]] towards [[Bern]] in Switzerland.


===Estonia===
===Estonia===
Old coastal Amber road route goes along E67 highway from Reiu in [[Häädemeeste Parish]] of Pärnumaa South, where it continues  as 331 local road between Rannametsa and Ikla villages.


===Poland===
In Estonia, the old coastal Amber road route is going north-south along the E67 highway from Reiu in [[Häädemeeste Parish]] of [[Pärnu County]], where it continues as 331 local road between Rannametsa and [[Ikla]] villages.
The shortest (and possibly oldest) road avoids [[Alpine climate|alpine]] areas and led from the Baltic coastline (nowadays [[Palanga Amber Museum|Lithuania]] and [[Poland]]), through Biskupin, [[Milicz]], [[Wrocław]], the [[Kłodzko Valley]] (less often through the [[Moravian Gate]]), crossed the [[Danube]] near [[Carnuntum]] in the [[Noricum Province|Noricum province]], headed southwest past [[Poetovio]], [[Celeia]], [[Emona]], [[Nauportus]], and reached [[Padua|Patavium]] and [[Aquileia]] at the Adriatic coast. One of the oldest directions of the last stage of the Amber Road to the south of the Danube, noted in the myth about the [[Argonauts]], used the rivers [[Sava]] and [[Kupa (river)|Kupa]], ending with a short continental road from Nauportus to [[Trsat|Tarsatica]] in [[Rijeka]] on the coast of the Adriatic.
 
=== France and Spain===
 
Routes connected amber finding locations at [[Ambarès-et-Lagrave|Ambares]] (near [[Bordeaux]]), leading to [[Béarn]] and the [[Pyrenees]]. Routes connecting the amber finding locations in northern Spain and in the Pyrenees were a trading route to the Mediterranean Sea.


[[Image:German Amber Roads.gif|thumb|Amber Roads in Germany]]
===Germany===
===Germany===
[[Image:German Amber Roads.gif|thumb|Amber Roads in Germany]]
 
Several roads connected the North Sea and Baltic Sea, especially the city of [[Hamburg]] to the [[Brenner Pass]], proceeding southwards to [[Brindisi]] (nowadays Italy) and [[Ambracia]] (nowadays Greece).
Several roads connected the North Sea and Baltic Sea, especially the city of [[Hamburg]] to the [[Brenner Pass]], proceeding southwards to [[Brindisi]] (nowadays Italy) and [[Ambracia]] (nowadays Greece).


===Switzerland===
=== Italy ===  
The [[Switzerland|Swiss]] region indicates a number of alpine roads, concentrating around the capital city [[Bern]] and probably originating from the banks of the [[Rhône]] and [[Rhine]].
 
In northern Italy, [[Aquileia]] was a major Roman city and near one end of the road where amber was found, and also shaped.<ref name=Smithsonian /><ref name=Bernstein />


===Netherlands===
===Netherlands===
A small section, including [[Baarn]], [[Barneveld (town)|Barneveld]], [[Amersfoort]] and [[Amerongen]], connected the North Sea with the [[Lower Rhine]].
A small section, including [[Baarn]], [[Barneveld (town)|Barneveld]], [[Amersfoort]] and [[Amerongen]], connected the North Sea with the [[Lower Rhine]].


===Belgium===
===Poland===
A small section led southwards from [[Antwerp]] and [[Bruges]] to the towns [[Braine-l'Alleud]] and [[Braine-le-Comte]], both originally named "Brennia-Brenna".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Northrup |display-authors=etal |first1=Cynthia |title=Encyclopedia of World Trade: From Ancient Times to the Present |volume=1 |date=2015 |publisher=Routledge |page=30}}</ref> The route continued by following the [[Meuse]] towards [[Bern]] in Switzerland.
 
The shortest (and possibly oldest) road avoids [[Alpine climate|alpine]] areas and led from the Baltic coastline (nowadays [[Palanga Amber Museum|Lithuania]] and [[Poland]]), through Biskupin, [[Milicz]], [[Wrocław]], the [[Kłodzko Valley]] (less often through the [[Moravian Gate]]), crossed the [[Danube]] near [[Carnuntum]] in the [[Noricum Province|Noricum province]], headed southwest past [[Poetovio]], [[Celeia]], [[Emona]], [[Nauportus]], and reached [[Padua|Patavium]] and [[Aquileia]] at the Adriatic coast. One of the oldest directions of the last stage of the Amber Road to the south of the Danube, noted in the myth about the [[Argonauts]], used the rivers [[Sava]] and [[Kupa (river)|Kupa]], ending with a short continental road from Nauportus to [[Trsat|Tarsatica]] in [[Rijeka]] on the coast of the Adriatic.
 
=== Slovenia ===
 
Coming from Aquileia (Italy), the Roman city of [[Emona]] (now within the Slovenian capital of [[Ljubljana]]) was on the south-west to north-east route, continuing to Celeia (now-[[Celje]]) and Poetovio (now-[[Ptuj]]), before going onto Scarbantia (now [[Sopron]], Hungary).<ref name=Bernstein />  [[Novo Mesto]] in southern Slovenia was also involved in the amber trade.<ref>{{cite web |title=Most hospitable is amber city Novo mesto |url=https://tourofslovenia.si/en/article/7/most-hospitable-is-amber-city-novo-mesto |website=Tour of Slovenia |publisher=Kolesarski klub Adria Mobil |access-date=30 March 2026 |date=31 May 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The amber findings of Novo Mesto (Slovenia) |url=https://www.bernsteinmuseum.ch/en/the-amber-findings-of-novo-mesto |website=Bernstein Museum |access-date=30 March 2026}}</ref>


===Southern France and Spain===
===Switzerland===
Routes connected amber finding locations at [[Ambarès-et-Lagrave|Ambares]] (near [[Bordeaux]]), leading to [[Béarn]] and the [[Pyrenees]]. Routes connecting the amber finding locations in northern Spain and in the Pyrenees were a trading route to the Mediterranean Sea.


===Mongolia===
The [[Switzerland|Swiss]] region indicates a number of alpine roads, concentrating around the capital city [[Bern]] and probably originating from the banks of the [[Rhône]] and [[Rhine]].
Sources of archaeological finds suggest that routes may also have connected Mongolia to eastern Europe during the [[Liao dynasty|Kitan/Liao Period]].<ref>{{cite journal |first=Valerie |last=Hansen |year=2013 |title=International fifting and the Kitan world, 907–1125 |journal=Journal of Song-Yuan Studies |volume=43 |pages=298–301|doi=10.1353/sys.2013.0027 }}</ref>


==Modern usage==
==Modern usage==
There is a tourist route stretching along the Baltic coast from [[Kaliningrad]] to [[Latvia]] called "Amber Road".
[[File:Amber Road.jpg|thumb|250px|The Amber Road (east route), as hypothesized by Polish historian Jerzy Wielowiejski, {{lang |pl |Główny szlak bursztynowy w czasach Cesarstwa Rzymskiego}} ({{translation |Main Route of the Amber Road of the Roman Empire}}), 1980]]
There is an unofficial set of tourist sites stretching on a route along the Baltic coast from [[Gdańsk]], Poland to [[Pärnu]], Estonia called the "Amber Road". Notable "Amber Road" sites on the route include:
* Amber museum in [[Gdańsk]];<ref name=Smithsonian />
* [[Kaliningrad Regional Amber Museum]], Russia;
* Mizgiris Amber Gallery-Museum in [[Nida, Lithuania]];
* The "Amber Bay" in [[Juodkrantė]], Lithuania;
* [[Lithuania Minor]] History Museum;
* Amber collection site in Karklė, Lithuania;
* [[Palanga Amber Museum]] in [[Palanga]], Lithuania;
* Open amber workshop in Palanga;
* Samogitian Alka in [[Šventoji, Lithuania|Šventoji]], Lithuania.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lithuania.travel/en-gb/attractions/-amber-road-objects/17126| url-status = dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141202202933/http://www.lithuania.travel/en-gb/attractions/-amber-road-objects/17126| archive-date = 2 December 2014| title = Amber Road Objects {{!}} Amber found at the Baltic Sea}}</ref>
 
Dating from the 1st century BC amber deposit found in Partynice near [[Wrocław]]. It is the world's largest archaeological find of amber, estimated at {{convert|1,240|–|1,760|kg}}. Currently it is in the Archaeological Museum in Wrocław.


"Amber Road" sites are:
In Poland, the north–south motorway [[A1 autostrada (Poland)|A1]] is officially named Amber Highway.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.msport.gov.pl/article/950-Autostrada-Bursztynowa-A1 |title=Autostrada Bursztynowa A1 |access-date=19 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903140745/http://www.msport.gov.pl/article/950-Autostrada-Bursztynowa-A1 |archive-date=3 September 2014 |language=pl}}</ref>
* Mizgiris Amber Gallery-Museum in [[Nida, Lithuania|Nida]];
* Amber Bay in [[Juodkrantė]];
* Lithuania Minor History Museum;
* Amber collection place in Karklė, Lithuania;
* [[Palanga Amber Museum]] in [[Palanga]];
* Open amber workshop in Palanga;
* Amber museum in [[Gdańsk]]; and
* Samogitian Alka in [[Šventoji, Lithuania|Šventoji]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.lithuania.travel/en-gb/attractions/-amber-road-objects/17126| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141202202933/http://www.lithuania.travel/en-gb/attractions/-amber-road-objects/17126| archive-date = 2014-12-02| title = Amber Road Objects {{!}} Amber found at the Baltic Sea}}</ref>
* Amber deposit from Partynice - Dating from the 1st century BC amber deposit found in [[Wrocław]]. It is the world's largest archaeological find of amber, estimated at {{convert|1,240|–|1,760|kg}}. Currently it is in the Archaeological Museum in Wrocław.


In Poland, the north–south motorway [[A1 autostrada (Poland)|A1]] is officially named Amber Highway.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.msport.gov.pl/article/950-Autostrada-Bursztynowa-A1 |title=Autostrada Bursztynowa A1 |access-date=2015-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903140745/http://www.msport.gov.pl/article/950-Autostrada-Bursztynowa-A1 |archive-date=2014-09-03 |language=pl}}</ref>
In Russian, [[Kaliningrad Oblast]] is occasionally referred to as 'the amber region' ({{lang|ru|Янтарный край}}).<ref name=Smithsonian>{{cite magazine |last=Billock |first=Jennifer |date=28 August 2019 |title=Follow the ancient Amber Road |department=Travel |magazine=Smithsonian Magazine |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/follow-ancient-amber-road-180970609/ |access-date=13 September 2020}}</ref>


[[EV9 The Amber Route]] is a long-distance cycling route between [[Gdańsk]], Poland and [[Pula]], Croatia which follows the course of the Amber Road.
The StudyEU Amber Road European University Alliance is a university network linked to the ancient route, formed to strengthen international cooperation and cohesion.<ref>{{cite web |title=European University Alliance StudyEU Amber Road |url=https://uni-nm.si/en/about_university/european_university_alliance_studyeu_amber_road/ |publisher=University of Novo mesto |access-date=30 March 2026}}</ref> 


The modern [[Baltic–Adriatic Corridor]] connects the two seas along routes that roughly follow the Amber Road.
The modern [[Baltic–Adriatic Corridor]] connects the two seas along routes that roughly follow the Amber Road.

Latest revision as of 14:40, 30 March 2026

File:Baltis amber road.jpg
The ancient route from the Baltic Sea to the areas of the Roman Empire by the Mediterranean Sea
File:Amber sources in Europe.jpg
Amber deposits in Europe

The Amber Road was an ancient trade route for the transfer of amber from coastal areas of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.[1] Prehistoric trade routes between Northern and Southern Europe were defined by the amber trade.

As an important commodity, sometimes dubbed "the gold of the north", amber was transported from the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts overland by way of the Vistula and Dnieper rivers to Italy, Greece, the Black Sea, Syria and Egypt over a period of thousands of years.

The route developed into an important trading and military route for the Roman Empire, and also formed the basis of several present-day transport routes.[2]

Antiquity

The oldest trade in amber started from Sicily. The Sicilian amber trade was directed to Greece, North Africa and Spain. Sicilian amber was also discovered in Mycenae by the archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, and it appeared in sites in southern Spain and Portugal. Its distribution is similar to that of ivory, so it is possible that amber from Sicily reached the Iberian Peninsula through contacts with North Africa. After a decline in the consumption and trade of amber at the beginning of the Bronze Age, around 2000 BC, the influence of Baltic amber gradually took the place of Sicilian amber throughout the Iberian Peninsula from around 1000 BC. The new evidence[which?] comes from various archaeological and geological locations on the Iberian Peninsula.[citation needed]

From at least the 16th century BC, amber was moved from Northern Europe to the Mediterranean area.[3][4] The breast ornament of the Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamen (c. 1333–1324 BC) contains large Baltic amber beads.[5][6][7] Schliemann found Baltic amber beads at Mycenae, as shown by spectroscopic investigation.[8] The quantity of amber in the Royal Hypogeum of Qatna, in Syria, is unparalleled among known second millennium BC sites in the Levant and the Ancient Near East.[9] Amber was sent from the North Sea to the Temple of Apollo at Delphi as an offering. From the Black Sea, trade could continue to Asia along the Silk Road, another ancient trade route.

In Roman times, a main route ran south from the Baltic coast (modern Lithuania), the entire north–south length of modern-day Poland (likely through the Iron Age settlement of Biskupin), through the land of the Boii (modern Czech Republic and Slovakia) to the head of the Adriatic Sea (Aquileia by the modern Gulf of Venice). Other commodities were exported to the Romans along with amber, such as animal fur and skin, honey, and wax, in exchange for Roman glass, brass, gold, and non-ferrous metals such as tin and copper imported into the early Baltic region.[10] As this road was a lucrative trade route connecting the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, Roman military fortifications were constructed along the route to protect merchants and traders from Germanic raids.[11]

The Old Prussian towns of Kaup and Truso on the Baltic were the starting points of the route to the south.[12][13] In Scandinavia the amber road probably gave rise to the thriving Nordic Bronze Age culture, bringing influences from the Mediterranean Sea to the northernmost countries of Europe.[14]

Whilst called the Amber Road, the prized gemstone was the smallest share of goods transported along the route.[2]

Known roads by country

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EV9 The Amber Route is a long-distance cycling route between Gdańsk, Poland, and Pula, Croatia, which follows the course of the Amber Road.

Austria

Near the villages of Petronell-Carnuntum and Bad Deutsch-Altenburg, the Roman ruins of Carnuntum mark a major trading site of the Amber Road and also the Limes Road.[15][2]

Belgium

A small section led southwards from Antwerp and Bruges to the towns Braine-l'Alleud and Braine-le-Comte, both originally named "Brennia-Brenna".[16] The route continued by following the Meuse towards Bern in Switzerland.

Estonia

In Estonia, the old coastal Amber road route is going north-south along the E67 highway from Reiu in Häädemeeste Parish of Pärnu County, where it continues as 331 local road between Rannametsa and Ikla villages.

France and Spain

Routes connected amber finding locations at Ambares (near Bordeaux), leading to Béarn and the Pyrenees. Routes connecting the amber finding locations in northern Spain and in the Pyrenees were a trading route to the Mediterranean Sea.

File:German Amber Roads.gif
Amber Roads in Germany

Germany

Several roads connected the North Sea and Baltic Sea, especially the city of Hamburg to the Brenner Pass, proceeding southwards to Brindisi (nowadays Italy) and Ambracia (nowadays Greece).

Italy

In northern Italy, Aquileia was a major Roman city and near one end of the road where amber was found, and also shaped.[15][2]

Netherlands

A small section, including Baarn, Barneveld, Amersfoort and Amerongen, connected the North Sea with the Lower Rhine.

Poland

The shortest (and possibly oldest) road avoids alpine areas and led from the Baltic coastline (nowadays Lithuania and Poland), through Biskupin, Milicz, Wrocław, the Kłodzko Valley (less often through the Moravian Gate), crossed the Danube near Carnuntum in the Noricum province, headed southwest past Poetovio, Celeia, Emona, Nauportus, and reached Patavium and Aquileia at the Adriatic coast. One of the oldest directions of the last stage of the Amber Road to the south of the Danube, noted in the myth about the Argonauts, used the rivers Sava and Kupa, ending with a short continental road from Nauportus to Tarsatica in Rijeka on the coast of the Adriatic.

Slovenia

Coming from Aquileia (Italy), the Roman city of Emona (now within the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana) was on the south-west to north-east route, continuing to Celeia (now-Celje) and Poetovio (now-Ptuj), before going onto Scarbantia (now Sopron, Hungary).[2] Novo Mesto in southern Slovenia was also involved in the amber trade.[17][18]

Switzerland

The Swiss region indicates a number of alpine roads, concentrating around the capital city Bern and probably originating from the banks of the Rhône and Rhine.

Modern usage

File:Amber Road.jpg
The Amber Road (east route), as hypothesized by Polish historian Jerzy Wielowiejski, Główny szlak bursztynowy w czasach Cesarstwa Rzymskiego (transl. Main Route of the Amber Road of the Roman Empire), 1980

There is an unofficial set of tourist sites stretching on a route along the Baltic coast from Gdańsk, Poland to Pärnu, Estonia called the "Amber Road". Notable "Amber Road" sites on the route include:

Dating from the 1st century BC amber deposit found in Partynice near Wrocław. It is the world's largest archaeological find of amber, estimated at 1,240–1,760 kilograms (2,730–3,880 lb). Currently it is in the Archaeological Museum in Wrocław.

In Poland, the north–south motorway A1 is officially named Amber Highway.[20]

In Russian, Kaliningrad Oblast is occasionally referred to as 'the amber region' (Янтарный край).[15]

The StudyEU Amber Road European University Alliance is a university network linked to the ancient route, formed to strengthen international cooperation and cohesion.[21]

The modern Baltic–Adriatic Corridor connects the two seas along routes that roughly follow the Amber Road.

References

  1. ↑ Singer, Graciela Gestoso. "Graciela Gestoso Singer, "Amber in the Ancient Near East", i-Medjat No. 2 (December 2008). Papyrus Electronique des Ankou".
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "The Roman Amber Road from the Adriatic to the Danube region". Verein zur Erhaltung der Römischen Bernsteinstraße. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  3. ↑ de Navarro, J.M. (December 1925). "Prehistoric routes between northern Europe and Italy defined by the amber trade". The Geographical Journal. 66 (6): 481–503. Bibcode:1925GeogJ..66..481D. doi:10.2307/1783003. JSTOR 1783003.
  4. ↑ Harding, Anthony F. (2001). "Reformation and barbarism in Europe, 1300–600 BC". In Cunliffe, Barry W. (ed.). Oxford Illustrated History of Prehistoric Europe. Oxford, UK: Oxford U. Press. ISBN 978-0-19-285441-4 – via Google Books.
  5. ↑ Reeves, C. N. (1990). The Complete Tutankhamun: The king, the tomb, the royal treasure. London, UK: Thames & Hudson.
  6. ↑ Serpico, M.; White, R. (2000). "Resins, amber, and bitumen". In Nicholson, P.T.; Shaw, I. (eds.). Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Part II, chapter 18, pp 430–475, esp. 451–454. as cited by Gestoso Singer
  7. ↑ Hood, S. (1990). "Amber in Egypt". Written at Liblice, PL. In Beck, C.W.; Bouzek, J. (eds.). Amber in Archaeology. Second International Conference on Amber in Archaeology. Institute of Archaeology. Prague, PL: Czech Academy of Sciences. pp. 230–235.
  8. ↑ Beck, Curt W.; Southard, Gretchen C.; Adams, Audrey B. (15 December 1972). "Analysis and provenience of Minoan and Mycenaean amber, [part] IV Mycenae". Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies. 13 (4): 359–385. ISSN 2159-3159. Retrieved 4 August 2023 – via Duke University.
  9. ↑ Mukherjee, Anna J.; et al. (2008). "The Qatna lion: Scientific confirmation of Baltic amber in late Bronze Age Syria" (PDF). Antiquity. 82 (315): 49–59. doi:10.1017/S0003598X00096435.
  10. ↑ Jovaiša, E. (2001). "The Balts and amber" (PDF). Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis. 22: 149–156.
  11. ↑ Schachinger, Ursula (2020). "The coin finds from the survey and the excavation in Strebersdorf (Burgenland, Austria) on the Amber Road (2008–2017)". Vjesnik Arheološkog muzeja u Zagrebu. 53 (1): 123–159. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  12. ↑ "Latitude: 54°.2667N, Longitude: 19°.2636E". GPS coordinates of Truso, Poland. Latitude.to. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  13. ↑ Jones, Gwyn (2001). A History of the Vikings. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. p. 167. ISBN 0-19-280134-1.
  14. ↑ Kristiansen, Kristian; Suchowska-Ducke, Paulina (2015). "Connected Histories: The dynamics of Bronze Age interaction and trade 1500–1100 BC". Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society. 81: 361–392. doi:10.1017/ppr.2015.17.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Billock, Jennifer (28 August 2019). "Follow the ancient Amber Road". Travel. Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  16. ↑ Northrup, Cynthia; et al. (2015). Encyclopedia of World Trade: From Ancient Times to the Present. 1. Routledge. p. 30.
  17. ↑ "Most hospitable is amber city Novo mesto". Tour of Slovenia. Kolesarski klub Adria Mobil. 31 May 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  18. ↑ "The amber findings of Novo Mesto (Slovenia)". Bernstein Museum. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  19. ↑ "Amber Road Objects | Amber found at the Baltic Sea". Archived from the original on 2 December 2014.
  20. ↑ "Autostrada Bursztynowa A1" (in Polish). Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  21. ↑ "European University Alliance StudyEU Amber Road". University of Novo mesto. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  • OWTRAD-scientific description of the amber road in Poland
  • Old World Traditional Trade Routes (OWTRAD) Project
  • Joannes Richter – "Die Bernsteinroute bei Backnang" (pdf file)

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