“Tears of the Sea” - What is amber?

September 13th, 2008

Amber is the fossilized resin that has seeped from the ancient pine forests growing approximately 40 million years ago. The aromatic resin dripped and oozed down from the trees filling the internal fissures and trapping seeds, leaves, feathers and insects.

The resin then became buried and fossilized. Fossilization takes millions of years and involves progressive oxidization and polymerization. There is no one tree responsible for the resin that turns into amber by fossilization.

The trees could have resembled the Kauri tree found today in New Zealand. Kauri gum was found by early settlers to New Zealand and exported back to Europe in the 19 century. It is softer than Baltic amber which is the oldest and hardest resin gemstone. Kauri gum or resin is called a copal and is not considered an Amber gemstone. Kauri copal is less than one million years old.

Post by Tom