[Jewelry making - Article 01526] - [Orchid] Amber colors....

[nola tomaska]

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Was: Comments from adults at shows

Hey Gerry

>     how are the different colours [of amber] obtained. I realize they
>     are treated but does anybody know what treatments are used. Also
>     I noticed a large amount of very bright red Amber > available,
>     where is this coming from? 

    Natural amber is fossil pine resin, or sap. Actually, the various
    amber colours do occur naturally from yellow to red to green - even
    blue! (from the Dominican republic). But these are rare and as you
    know a lot of amber is synthetic these days, made from plastics. You
    can tell the real thing by applying heat (though I am not sure most
    vendors would approve lol) 

    http://www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/ident.htm 

    I trawled this info on the web, which I love: 

    "Most often small and winged animals were trapped in the sticky
    resin. Approximately 86% of the inclusions are insects, about 12% are
    spiders, 1,5% belong to other groups of animals and only 0,5% of
    inclusions are plants." 

    The same source says: 

    "Colors of amber were influenced by changes in resin when it leaked
    out: evaporating volatile elements could form in transparent resin
    plenty of gas microbubbles, which "roiled" the resin (yellow amber);
    this intensive process in 1 sq. mm of resin could make up to 1
    million such bubbles (white amber). Blue tint formed when FeS2
    admixtures got in resin fallen on soil-amber of blue tint is the
    most rare. Green amber formed when small parts of plants got in the
    resin, black amber - when resin mixed up with soil, small parts of
    wood bark."
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