Amber Stone, Amber Jewelry

THE AMBER STONE

Perhaps the oldest substance used for human adornment. Beads and pendants of amber stone have been found in northern European gravesites dating back to 8000 B.C.

Amber is not a true stone. It is fossilized resin of coniferous trees of the Oligoncene geological epoch, some thirty million years ago. It varies in color from pale yellow to dark brown, although some specimens have been found that are red. Amber is famous for containing insects and small animals of various kinds as well as leaves, bark and other contemporary detritus which became stuck and enclosed in the resin while it was still liquid.

Because amber, unlike gemstones, is warm to the touch and often contains insect fragments, it was thought to possess life. It was sacred to worshipers of the Mother Goddess in classical times because it was believed to contain the very essence of life-the animating principle.

Amber is a very soft stone, with a hardness of 2 to 2-1/2. The name is derived from the Arabic. It is sometimes also called succinct which is from the Latin (succus), meaning "juice". The ancient Greeks called it (elektron).

The ancient Greeks were the first to record information about amber's "electrical" properties. If it is rubbed with a piece of silk, it will attract dust and ashes.

Amber has always been associated with magic. It is a favorite protective and enhancing stone of Wiccans and Shamans. It is a sensual, (amber is warm to the touch,) magnetic stone that attracts love.

In ancient times, these stones were burned to cleanse the air, especially during childbirth. It was also thought to improve eyesight by gazing into it.

The trees that exuded the resin for Baltic amber grew in what is now central and south-eastern Sweden. From there, it was carried by rivers and the sea to the present site.

The most prolific source of amber stones is the Baltic seacoast to the north and west of a town now known a Kaliningrad in the USSR. Small deposits have been found in the Dominican Republic.

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