101 Amber Fossil Facts That Will Absolutely Amaze You

Most amber stones are considered to be the hardened resin of certain ancient trees.

Natural amber is said to be as old as 40 million years old. It is found in a shade range of yellow to white.

Due to the various unique properties of this fossilized resin, amber stone has been used as an adornment and studied for centuries. It has a natural history of being used for sculptures, jewelry, ceremonial pieces, and even instruments and decorative objects throughout the world. Even now, it is still used in the manufacture of smoking and glassblowing mouthpieces.

Real amber has medicinal properties as well. Even today, teething kids are given amber necklaces that they chew, which helps relieve tooth pain. Baltic amber acid is used to treat different forms of anemia and is also helpful in various other diseases.

Some people believe amber consists of certain energies that can calm and protect humans. It is known to have many positive effects on the human psyche. White amber is also believed by some to have a good effect on the brain, nervous system, lymph, and heart.

The highest quality of amber is found in the Baltic region, which is the expanded land around the Baltic sea. Another very high-quality amber is Dominican amber, which has more inclusions.

A scratch test is enough to check for the authentication of an amber stone. Real amber will not budge and you won't be able to leave scratch marks on the stone, whereas a fake one would show damage from a fingernail scratch.

Pressed amber are small remnants of ambers that are fused together with the help of high pressure and extreme temperature conditions, that is, extreme heat sources. Pressed amber is considered to be cheap, easily available, and not as valuable. It is not as functional as natural amber. It does not perform like natural amber and is also easily breakable.

Shaped amber beads are a result of pressed amber; they are either cut from amber nuggets or formed from some way of pressing the ambers. Amber deposits occur throughout the old and the new world. They are often found in seaweeds and flotsam.

Like most gems, amber is not found in the places where they are formed. Rather, they are found at a distance from where resin-producing trees have grown.

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Fun Facts About Amber Fossils

Some fun amber fossils facts are that a true amber will not easily break and neither will they become sticky.

One of the most important facts about amber is that it is capable of preserving articles that get trapped in it even if this was about 50 million years ago. Trapped particles in amber stones could be insects, small organisms, or other beautifully preserved plant structures. These particles can render the stones so much more rare and valuable.

Yellow-amber was collected by humans throughout the Stone Age. Also, in the Middle Ages, amber was used for various things. It was used for its supposed medicinal properties and for making household items like miniature plastics, vessels for wine, incense bottles, and more.

Facts About Amber Fossil's Formation

Amber fossil formation is a unique and time-consuming process that takes place over a long period before forming the final product.

When a tree gets injured, it exudes resin which in turn, in its semi-solid form, plugs up the injury and forms a defensive response. It helps in sealing and sterilizing the injury. The fossilization of this thick resin then takes place, intense pressure and temperature conditions help solidify it to make amber.

Amber is typically found to be 40-90 million years old. Amber is basically a tree resin that gets solidified after the required pressure and heat conditions are met and gets transformed into a beautiful yellow, golden gem.

Facts About Baltic Amber

Baltic amber deposited on the Baltic coast is considered to be one of the most valuable and highest qualities of amber.

In the Baltic region, around the expanded land of the Baltic sea, the most valuable quality of amber occurs. Fossil resin amber has been used time and again for medicinal purposes. Baltic amber is believed to have truly healing properties.

Baltic amber is known to have a vast range of healing properties for infants as it can give relief to babies during chest congestion, sore throat, sore neck, and headaches. Baltic amber is also considered by some to be a viable alternative to pharmacological medicines that can help in eliminating teething pain.

Warm Baltic amber is also known to have a strong smell of succinic acid which is also known as amber acid. The smell of this acid has a strong stimulating effect on the nervous and respiratory organs.

Facts About Amber Gemstones

Reddish amber is considered to be more valuable than golden amber.

In certain rare cases, strong fluorescence can give amber a bluish or greenish appearance which is again, more valuable and is often used for making amber ornaments and amber jewelry.

A scratch test is enough to check for the authentication of an amber stone. Real amber will not ever develop scratch marks, whereas a fake stone would show damage from a fingernail scratch.

Natural amber is found to be as old as 40 million years old. It is found in a shade range of yellow to white. Whitish opaque amber stones are called bone amber.

The oldest amber that has ever been discovered is from Upper Carboniferous rocks, 320 million years ago. Most amber originates from pine or coniferous trees.

Grey amber, also known as ambergris, is a solid waxy substance that gets produced in the intestine of sperm whales. It is a very pricey substance and also gets washed up along the coasts of various seas and oceans. It is an extremely valuable substance since it is rarely found.

Did You Know?

Amber jewelry is very pricey. Stones containing any inserts of insects and plants are more expensive than the clean, plain pieces with no inclusions in them.

The place known for having 90% of the world's amber is the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia. Russia is known for having the world's largest supply of amber.

It is also the place where the very famous 'Amber Room' was installed. One of Russia's most treasured artifacts was the Amber Room. The Amber Room was an intricate and priceless work of art; a chamber decorated with amber panels backed with gold leaf and mirrors.

It was a room full of amber, gold, and jewels. Construction of the Amber Room began in 1701. It was installed at Charlottenburg Palace, home of Friedrich I, the first King of Prussia. It disappeared in 1945.

When the Red Army seized the city in 1945, no traces of the Amber Room was found. It is one of Russia's greatest mysteries. The Amber Room was also known as the eighth wonder of the world. It still remains a mystery as to where the world-famous Amber Room disappeared to.

The highest quality of amber comes from the Baltic region which is found near the expanded land around the Baltic sea. Another very high quality of amber is Dominican amber which tends to have more inclusions and particles.

Amber consists of certain energies which are also believed by some people to calm and protect humans. In addition, it is believed by people to have a positive effect on the human psyche.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 101 amber fossil facts that will absolutely amaze you then why not take a look at how are petrified fossils formed or saber-tooth fossils.