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Amber jewelry

Do you have a passion for amber jewelry? Maybe you are fascinated by the pieces of animal and plant history it contains. Or perhaps you are just drawn to the gem’s enchanting warmth and mystery. Whatever your interest, here you will find great information about this unique gem.

Some fascinating facts about amber and amber jewelry

• Over 214 ancient plant species have been identified through the DNA found in amber.
• Amber jewelry has been discovered from as far back as the Paleolithic Era (18,000 B.C.), and was one of the first traded commercial goods.
• Diamonds, jet, and amber are the only gems of plant origin.
• The quality of amber is determined by the level of succinite acid. Baltic amber has the highest level of succinite and is therefore the best quality amber.
• Baltic amber is the strongest amber and favored for use in amber jewelry.
• Amber is the lightest and softest of all gemstones. It is light enough to float in salt water, which aided in its discovery.
• Amber comes from the vascular tissue (not sap) of ancient trees 40-60 million years old. The amber was carried by freshwater streams from forests into the sea.
• Amber stores static electricity strong enough to attract lint, and was used to remove lint by the Phoenicians & Etruscans.
• Amber not only has a warm appearance, but it is also warm to the touch.
• Amber comes in many colors, from black brownish-red, orange, green, yellow & cream to white and even blue.
• No two amber gems are alike.
• Even in ancient times, amber was considered mystical. Some Greeks believed amber was frozen sunshine, broken away from the heavens and sunk into the sea. Slavic tribes believed it was the solidified tears of gods, while Neolithic peoples believed it held the souls of the dead.
• The most common mystical use for amber was to ward off evil.
• Ambergris is sometimes found washed up on beaches, and often mistaken for amber. It is in fact made within a whale’s digestive tract and is thought to be the result of infection.

Color

There are about 250 color variations of amber. Common colors appearing in jewelry today are milky, citrine, honey, cherry, and green. Two factors that affect the color of amber is air and the actual tree source. The gas bubbles vary in size and quantity within each piece. In the space between the bubbles, the resin is clear. The bubble inclusions actually interfere with the passage of light through the amber, resulting in the dilution and variation of color and opaqueness. For example, there are so many bubbles in milky amber, when examined under the microscope, it resembles sea foam - thus causing the solid milky color.

Studies show that comparisons between the colors of fossil resin and recent resin (Copal) suggests that certain colors come from certain tree types and locations. Today, amber is commonly heat treated to enhance the luster and clarity of exotic colors like green and cognac. Milky, creamy, lemon and, of course, honey amber are natural colors which have not been heated.

Is green amber a “real” form of amber?

Natural green amber is very pale yellow green – almost clear. Generally it contains many inclusions of plant debris and earth sediments – so much so that it is sometimes referred to as “earth amber”. It doesn’t look anything like the green amber found on the market today.

The deep color of modern green amber is created by applying a jeweler’s paste to the back of the specimen and heat treating it. Sometimes it is simply heated and set with a silver backing. This might sound like cheating, but this type of green amber is in fact accepted by the Amber Association in Poland. Treatment is a common practice among gemologists and is used to bring out the color and shine of many other gemstones, such as peridot, citrine, and turquoise.

Copal or “Columbian Amber”

Beware when purchasing amber and amber jewelry from gem shows, auctions and shops as there is an imposter on the market. Copal, or “Columbian amber”, is increasingly offered for sale as real amber. It is not the precious gemstone derived from the tissue of ancient trees, but rather an immature resin of recent origin.

Copal will easily fool the casual consumer as it is very similar in appearance. It has become a controversial topic among amber enthusiasts, as it is often passed for amber. Amber is more precious due to its scarcity, age, and durability. Copal

The name “copal” was derived from the Spanish word for incense, “copalli”. Copal is used as incense as well as varnish. It is only 100 to 3 million years old, which is very young compared to the 45,000 million year old true amber. Though it is easy for the untrained eye to mistake copal for true amber, there is one test that works quite well. Apply a small drop of ether, which evaporates quickly on amber leaving it unaffected, while it makes copal and other recent resins sticky. Check out the “amber tests” page for more ways to tell if you have copal or the real McCoy.

Amber tests

There are several clever amber imposters out on the market today, including copal and plastic. If you are buying amber jewelry from a suspicious source, there are several tests you can perform to find out if the amber is true. Try several tests to determine whether your piece is real or not.

Does it float? True amber floats in salt water. This is how it was discovered – floating on the Baltic sea. To see if your “amber” floats, dissolve two tablespoons of table salt in eight ounces of water. Drop your “amber” into the solution. If it sinks, it is not amber. If it floats, it is probably amber. This method only works if the amber is removed from its setting.

The scratch test. Real amber has a hardness of approximately 2.5 on the Moh's scale. This is quite soft, but your fingernail alone should not be able to scratch it. Try scratching your “amber” gemstone with your fingernail. If it makes a mark, it isn’t amber. If it doesn’t make a mark, it may be amber. This is an effective test in distinguishing copal from amber, as copal is very soft can be scratched with a fingernail.

It’s electric! Amber holds a charge of static electricity and was actually used to remove lint in earlier times. To see if your “amber” is static, place some small pieces of tissue on a flat surface. Rub the amber vigorously on the carpet or with a piece of velvet until it is warm and hold it closely above the tissue pieces. If the pieces of tissue are not attracted to the specimen, it is not amber. If tissue is attracted to the specimen, it may be amber.

Does it glow? Place your “amber” specimen under a short-wave ultraviolet light. If the specimen fluoresces a pale blue under the light, it may be amber. If it doesn’t glow at all, or glows a color other than pale blue, it is not amber. Copal doesn’t fluoresce.

Pine fresh scent. Rub the specimen briskly on a piece of cloth until it gets warm, and then smell it. If it’s real amber, it should emit a mild pine or turpentine odor. If it smells like plastic or chemicals, it isn’t amber. Beware that if it has the right smell, it still may be copal.

Baby oil test. Drop your specimen into a clear glass of mineral oil (Johnson's Baby Oil works fine). Mineral oil and amber have very similar refractive indexes. If the edges of the “amber” appear as a dark outline or light halo, the specimen is not amber. If it is difficult to distinguish the edges of the “amber”, it may be real.

Lick it. Wash the specimen with mild soapy water then rinse and dry thoroughly. Taste it – do you detect a chemical, strong, or unpleasant taste? If so, it isn’t amber. Remember, amber comes from the trees, so it shouldn’t taste unnatural or manmade. If the specimen has no taste (or one that is very subtle) it may be amber.

A Bug’s Life. If your specimen contains an insect or other animal, try to have it identified. Most bugs and animals found in real amber are now extinct. If your bug is no longer on the planet, you most likely have a real piece – but beware – there have been some instances where old insects were inserted into amber imposters.

Hot, hot, hot. Is your specimen warm or cold to the touch? Amber should feel warm when handled at room temperature.