What is Amber?

About Amber:

• It is fossil tree resin that has achieved a stable state through loss of volatile constituents and chemical change after burial in the ground.
• Amber has been found throughout the world, but the largest and most significant deposits occur along the shores of the Baltic Sea in sands 40 to 60 million years old.
• Amber occurs as irregular nodules, rods, or drop like shapes in all shades of yellow with nuances of orange, brown, and, rarely, red. 
• Milky-white opaque varieties are called bone amber.
• The turbidity of some amber is caused by inclusions of many minute air bubbles. 
• Many hundreds of species of fossil insects and plants are found as inclusions.
• Deeply coloured translucent to transparent amber is prized as gem material.
• Ornamental carved objects, beads, rosaries, cigarette holders, and pipe mouthpieces are made from amber.
• Amberoid, or “pressed amber,” is produced by fusing together small pieces of amber under pressure. Parallel bands, or flow structure, in amberoid help to distinguish it from natural amber.

Q1: What is resin?

In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Plants secrete resins for their protective benefits in response to injury.

News: 90-million-year-old amber discovered in Antarctica reveals secrets of ancient forest

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