Amber is often referred to as the sun stone and has a personality that almost makes you smile when you hold it. Real amber is technically not a gemstone or mineral, but a fossilized sap from prehistoric trees, primarily in Scandinavia and elsewhere around the sea coast. As such, it has a strong connection with the past, and in larger pieces small insects that last flew a long time ago, can sometimes be seen, captured in the resin and preserved forever.
The stone is very light, so it is ideal for jewelry, and unlike other crystals, it isn’t cold to touch.
It is generally accepted that the amber from the Baltic region is the world’s finest. The mine near the town of Yantarny in Russia holds 90% of all World’s deposits of high quality amber.
Amber jewelry has been made since before the time of Christ. In the Roman Empire, amber was called “Gold of the North”. For centuries Amber jewelry was worn only by nobility. Because amber was ascribed many healing properties, it came to be used medicinally in many cultures. As centuries passed, more and more people could afford to own treasured amber jewelry. Even today it is thought that wearing amber jewelry will instill confidence in the wearer, balance a person’s mood, and lessen depression and anxiety.
Burmese amber is the hardest of all. It’s hardness stays at 3 on the Moh’s scale; Baltic amber is usually in the range of 2-2.5; Dominican amber is the softest at 1-2. Geologically, younger amber tends to be softer than amber that has been buried for a long time.
This gorgeous product of Nature comes in different colors. Yellow, orange, red, white, brown, green are most common.
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