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leaf trapped in amber

Testing of Amber

    There are many simple and effective preliminary tests which include:-
  1. Pricking with a red-hot needle. If it is real amber it will be more difficult to insert the needle than plastic. Its smell is all too indicative of real amber versus plastic or a man-made resin.
  2. UV light. Exposure to a source of Ultra-violet light will create a bluish glow within real amber which is absent from the artificial resins.
  3. Float or sink. Placing the item into salt water will expose real amber which should float as opposed to the fake resins which sink.
  4. Static Electricity. Rubbing the amber will produce static electricity sufficient to make the hairs on you arm stand up.
  5. Cutting off a small sample. man-made resins will for example dissolve under certain chemical. The small sample is also used for infra-red analysis, electron microscope analysis and carbon data testing.

The Largest single piece of Amber in Europe


amber

Amber from Indonesia

Currently we are lucky to house and exhibit one of Europe's largest single pieces of amber. It can now be seen at our silver jewellery shop in the Armada shopping centre, Plymouth. This amazing single piece of amber was discovered in a mining accident in Indonesia on 4th Jan 2007.





the stone of the sun

4 Kilos of Amber

It has been cut and polished to exhibit an interior of pre-historic life trapped in the fossilized resin. It weighs nearly four kilograms and is one of the largest single pieces of amber in Europe. It is still subject to scientific analysis however preliminary results indicate it is between 50-70 million years old. It measure approximately a staggering 14 inches wide.




amber glowing like the sun

Stone of the Sun


One of the startling features of this magnificent sample of amber, is its natural radiant glow under light. As many of our customers have commented it really look likes the stone of the sun. Its natural orange glow is one of the many reasons why amber lends itself so perfectly for the creation of jewellery.





hornet or fly trapped in amber

Insects trapped in amber

The insect is yet to be correctly identified. We await results from Bristol University however many have commented it looks like it belonged to the Hornet family.