The celebrations began today with an international conference on amber and the European Amber Road.

The conference on European Amber Road is usually hosted by San Marino, but this year Novo mesto was given the honour due to the numerous amber findings in the area.

The prehistoric settlement of Novo mesto used to be a part of the so-called Amber Road, used for transporting amber from the Baltic to the Mediterranean from the Early Bronze Age to the Classical Antiquity.

Amber necklaces and other amber jewellery has been found in the Novo mesto area.

The fourth international conference on the Amber Road will be followed on Friday by an international conference on towns along the Amber Road and the intertwining of tourism, archaeology and industry.

A big piece of raw amber will be put on display at the Novo mesto's main square tomorrow. A new educational trail dedicated to amber will open on the occasion.

Three exhibitions will open tonight at the regional Dolenjsko museum with President Borut Pahor in attendance.

The main exhibition, Amber - Baltic Jewels in Novo mesto, will present archaeological finds of amber in Slovenia, while the two visiting exhibitions will focus on the legendary Amber Room in St. Petersburg and on modern Polish amber design.

The exhibitions at the Dolenjsko museum, on display until 30 September, feature amber pieces from museums around the country as well as the Gdansk Archaeological Museum and the Tsarskoye Selo museum from St. Petersburg.