Baltic Amber Jewelry - A history of Baltic Amber & it's use in Jewelry

Tears of the Sunby Leslie Risebrough, Visible Treasures Independent Sales Leader

"Thousands of years ago, people were fascinated by the extraordinary, inexplicable properties of the golden pebbles found on beaches and in coastal forests. The stone burnt when cast into the fire, exuding a pleasant resinous smell and aromatic smoke, and, when rubbed, attracted various small light items towards itself as if by magic.

The stone interior would often hide small undamaged plants and insects, which must also have found their way inside by magic. That sufficed to arouse the curiosity of primitive man, with admiration & respect for this unusual gem. It is no wonder man started attributing magical powers to amber."
--excerpt from The Great Book of Amber by Elzbieta Mierzwinska

Our Baltic Amber Collection features gem quality authentic Baltic Amber straight from the area surrounding the Baltic Sea. In this article, we would like to share a bit of background information with you regarding where Baltic Amber comes from, why it is so valuable and its healing properties.

Baltic Amber is a specific subset of amber that is found only in northern Europe and has been appreciated for its colour and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Over 35 million years ago, resin oozed out from a forest of conifers (cone-bearing seed plants and/or trees) in the region now covered by the Baltic Sea, and eventually hardened into clear lumps. Shoved around northern Europe by glaciers and river channels, lumps of genuine Baltic amber can still be found today on the eastern coasts of England and Holland, throughout Poland, Scandinavia and northern Germany and much of western Russia and the Baltic states.

Amber and diamonds are two of only three gems of vegetative origin and both are valued for their rarity and quality. Baltic amber is the most highly valued form of amber--it is the rarest Amber and has the highest level of succinic acid, the level of which determines its quality.
Amber was one of the first commercially traded products, and has even been used as coinage by the ancient Romans. Archaeologists have been interested in identifying Baltic amber over the years-- as opposed to locally available amber--because its presence outside of its known distribution is an indication of long-distance trade. It has been found in pendants dating as far back as 12,000 BC, embedded in the foundations of houses as way to ensure good fortune to the occupants in 9500 BC, and in Tutenkhamen's tomb in Egypt. Amber jewelry was mentioned by Homer in The Odyssey as a princely gift, and as a part of religious objects including Rosary Beads after the Crusades in the latter part of 1200 A.D. because of its smooth, silky feel. The Romans valued Amber more than the slaves that harvested it--a small single piece of amber was worth more than a healthy slave.

There have been ideas put forth over the years regarding amber preserving ancient DNA in captured insects--such as was put forth in the popular Jurassic Park Trilogy--but it isn't likely. Although some DNA may be present in amber specimens less than 100,000 years old, the process that is used to retrieve it destroys the specimen. Baltic Amber, being over 35 million years old, is too old for this process to work, and scientists are reluctant to destroy a 35 million year old sample on the chance it may contain DNA.

There are also many myths surrounding the origins of Amber. One of the first was written by Ovid-- he wrote that when Phaethon, son of Helios the Sun, convinced his father to allow him to drive the Chariot of the Sun through the heavens for a day, he went too close to earth and scorched it. To save Earth from being burned up, Zeus struck Phaethon with a thunderbolt and he died, plunging out of the sky and falling to earth. In their grief, his mother and sister turned into trees on Earth to be with him, but still mourned him. Their tears, dried by the sun, are Amber.

Amber can occur in a range of different colours--from the standard golden honey colour, to a pale yellow, a white, brown or almost black. There are also more uncommon colours, such as red (also known as "cherry amber"), green and blue. Our Visible Treasures Baltic Amber Collection pieces can include up to five different colours of amber depending on the piece--honey, yellow, green, butter (creamy yellow) and cherry red.

Amber is warm to the touch and upon your skin. It rests at room temperature--if you touch it, you will notice a comparative warmth immediately, as contrasted with glass or, say, turquoise. It is thought to calm, relieve stress and aid in memory loss, and has been used to treat headaches, bone and heart problems, and help purify the body.

This beautiful, distinctive and rare gem is a gift from nature and one which will continue to be valued for years to come. Our Baltic Amber collection contains stunning designs which showcase the natural beauty of this rare gem. If you are looking for something rare and beautiful either for yourself, or as a gift, consider something from this amazing collection.

Some celebrities have pieces from our collection including Actress Estella Warren, Acclaimed Singer/Songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk and, Actor Eric Roberts even picked up one of our Baltic Amber Bracelets for his wife recently.

You can shop our Baltic Amber Collection here.

~ Happy Shopping!