Baltic Amber
Baltic Amber, calls also “Baltic Gold” is not a mineral, but the hardened resin of certain trees fossilized over long periods of time growing in the Middle Palaeogene, about 40 million years ago on the northern and eastern coasts of the epicontinental sea filling the eastern part of the North Sea basin. It occurs mainly along the southern shores of the Baltic Sea: in Germany, Poland, on the Sambia peninsula in Russia, Lithuania Latvia and also in Ukraine. From a chemical point of view, amber consists of 80% carbon, 10% hydrogen and 10% oxygen.
Colors Of Amber
Baltic Amber comes in more than 300 different shades. There is no other Amber that has such a variety of colors as Baltic amber. It owes its enormous range of colors to the presence of tiny, invisible to the naked eye, air bubbles or organic debris, closed in it millions of years ago, and the conditions in which it stayed. Amber is opaque when there are millions of tiny air bubbles inside it, probably left over from water. The most common varieties of Amber are: cognac, butterscotch, honey, citron. White, bluish and greenish colors are rare. Amber is a living stone, it darkens when exposed to light and air. Some of the nuggets contain insect inclusions.
Inclusions
Unique Amber pieces comes with insects inclusions, fragments of plants (small leaves, flowers' parts ) On average, only one in a thousand inclusions is of botanical origin The most common ones are flies and mosquitoes. They make 45% of all found items. The age of inclusions is the same as that of the Amber they are contained in. For Baltic amber, the fossils found in it come from the Eocene, circa 45 million years ago.
Healing Properties
Amber has many valuable healing properties. It has been used in natural medicine for centuries, and it was believed that Amber protects against diseases. In Polish culture they making Amber tincture from small raw pieces- It is said to do many things inclucing the reduction of blood pressure, improving the digestion, calming the nerves, soothing pain, improving healing and strengthening immune system. Moreover in the past, Amber was credited with magical properties. It was treated like a talisman -
it was supposed to protect against diseases and misfortune.
Amber Myths
One of the most famous mysteries invoved with Amber was “Amber Room” -a chamber decorated in amber panels backed with gold leaf and mirrors, located in the Catherine Palace near Saint Petersburg. Constructed in the 18th century in Prussia, the room was dismantled and eventually disappeared during World War II. Before its loss, it was considered an "Eighth Wonder of the World".