Colors:
Light yellow, green, dark reddish orange, and many variations of
these as well.
Clarity: Transparent
to opaque
Optic Character: SR,
stong ADR, often with strain colors
Cause
of Color: Delocalized
electrons on organic molecules and impurities, blues and greens
due to stron fluorescence
Fluorescence: Inert to Strong
Fracture
: Concoidal
Luster : Waxy to resinous
Cleavage : None
Durability: Poor
Characteristics
for Identification:
Gas
bubbles, Insects, Flow lines, organic matter
Localities:
A bundant along the shores of the Baltic Sea where it is mined extensively
from TERTIARY glauconite sands that are from 40 million to 60 million
years old and the Dominican Republic, Austria, Canada, China, Czech
Republic, Dominican Republic, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Spain, Sweeden,
Ukraine, United States
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Amber
Amber is
the fossil resin from a pine tree that flourished in the Baltic
region some 25 to 40 million years ago. Globs of this aromatic
sap poured down from prehistoric trees, often trapping insects,
twigs, bark and leaves. Amber is one of the few gemstones of
organic origin. It emits a sunny and bright energy capable of
calming nerves and enlivening the disposition. It stimulates
the intellect and helps with making choices. The ancient Greeks
saw amber as hardened tears or rays of sunset. In ancient India
and Egypt, amber was burned as an incense, believed to purify
the surrounding area.
Amber is often confused with:
Plastic
Citrine
Chalcedony
Copal
Reconstructed Amber
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