Amber's English name is Amber, which comes from the Latin Ambrum, meaning "essence". Some people say that it comes from Arabic Anbar, which means "gum", because the Spanish call Arabic gum and amber buried in the ground amber. In ancient China, amber was regarded as a "tiger spirit".
The earliest recorded resin fossil was Carboniferous, but amber did not appear until the early Cretaceous. The famous amber sedimentary rocks come from the Baltic Sea and Dominica. Amber is mainly the resin of ancient gymnosperms, and now there are also gums produced by flowering plants. Amber in the Baltic Sea sometimes contains insect or plant residues. It is speculated that amber may have been formed in the forest of primitive pine tree amber pine. Unlike amber, Holocene semi-fossil hard resin will melt in organic solution.
Amber is a kind of resin fossil, which was buried underground tens of millions of years ago and formed through certain chemical changes. It is an organic mineral. Amber has a variety of shapes, the surface often retains the lines produced when the resin flows, and bubbles and ancient insect or plant debris are often seen inside. The color is generally yellow and red, and the front is transparent. Amber will soften at 150℃. High-quality amber can be processed into handicrafts, and inferior amber can be used as chemical raw materials. Amber is the product of sedimentation, mainly produced in the sediments of Cretaceous or Tertiary glutenite and coal seam. China, Liaoning, Fushun and Henan Xixia are rich in amber.
Amber is the resin of tertiary coniferous plants, which was buried underground by geological processes. After a long geological period, resin lost its volatile components and polymerized and solidified to form amber. Often accompanied by coal seams. Amber is a hydrocarbon containing succinic acid and amber resin. Its chemical composition is C 10H 16O, of which 79% is carbon, 10.5% is hydrogen, 10.5% is oxygen, and sometimes it contains a small amount of hydrogen sulfide. The shape of amber is mostly pie-shaped, kidney-shaped, tumor-shaped, slender water-drop-shaped and other irregular shapes. It belongs to amorphous body. Most of the colors are yellow, orange, brown, brownish yellow or dark red, and light green, yellow and lavender varieties are extremely rare. Grease luster, transparent to translucent. The refractive index is 1.539- 1.545, multicolor. Hardness 2-3, density1.1-1.16g/cm3. Brittle, cleavage-free, conchoidal fracture. Amber is an organic substance, which softens when heated to 150℃ and melts at 250℃-300℃, giving off an aromatic rosin smell. Amber is soluble in alcohol. It usually contains insects, seeds and other inclusions.
At present, resins are collected commercially, such as hard resins produced in New Zealand. Baltic amber is used for jewelry and hard resin for decoration. Spencer et al. recently re-studied these coba resins from New Zealand based on the samples provided by the Institute of Gemological Society of New Zealand and the samples obtained from New Zealand coal mines. In his research, the most important gemological discovery shows that the ether introduced in classic gemological books to identify cobalamin and amber is not ideal for kauri, that is, some kauri is actually insoluble or only slightly soluble in ether. Drop a drop of ether on these insoluble Coba resins, and there is no reaction or slight reaction after 30s; However, after dropping a drop of alcohol on these Copa resins (including 25Ma resins), all of them will react in alcohol after 30s: the surface will become sticky or opaque, while the real amber will not react at all when dropping alcohol, indicating that it is insoluble in alcohol. Copa resin is also easy to produce dissolution reaction similar to alcohol in glacial acetic acid, but glacial acetic acid will produce irritating smell, which may be harmful to alcohol. Human body burns, so it is not suitable as a gemological test method. In addition, his experiments also show that the reaction of natural Copa resin under ultraviolet fluorescence is unstable, which is difficult to be used as an identification basis to distinguish amber from Copa resin.
Types and evaluation of amber. According to the different colors and characteristics of amber, the varieties of amber in China are Jin Po, Xuepo, Insect Po, Xiangpo, Lingpo, Shipo, Huapo, Shuipo, Mingpo, Wapo, beeswax and Korean pine resin, among which there is no clear definition. For example, Worm and Lingpo should be considered as one kind, both of which refer to amber containing animal remains. Flower bud refers to amber that has been artificially exploded, among which it should be noted that the pressed amber flower is particularly fine, chaotic and the background is turbid. Beeswax refers to opaque amber. Xiangpo refers to the beeswax with obvious fragrance after kneading, because the degree of treatment of beeswax is usually small, so the fragrance is rich. Water amber refers to amber containing water droplets.
The value of amber is not high now, unless it is antiques, exquisite works of art or contains biological remains. The economic value of amber depends on the purity, shape, size and color of insects. The color is strong and positive, and the impurities are less. Green and blood red are the best colors, but at present, green amber is only found in Dominica, and Baltic green amber is mostly caused by high temperature dyeing. Transparent blood amber is mostly caused by high temperature baking, and natural blood amber will have visible inclusions. Usually, strong colors are usually accompanied by a small amount of visible impurities. There is a saying that tiny inclusions are the coloring factor of amber and also come from it. The most valuable variety is amber wrapped with insects, commonly known as "amber hidden bees", with clear insects, realistic shapes, large individuals and large numbers as the best.
Maintenance of amber amber. Amber has a low melting point, is easy to melt, and is afraid of heat and exposure. Amber products should avoid direct sunlight and should not be placed in high temperature places. Amber is easy to dehydrate and crack when it is too dry. Amber is an organic substance, which is not suitable for contact with organic solvents, such as nail polish, alcohol, gasoline, kerosene, heavy liquid, etc., and it is not suitable for dressing cabinets. Generally, it is not necessary to measure its density with heavy liquid, but to measure its refractive index with oil immersion method. Amber is fragile and has low hardness, so it is not suitable for external impact. Friction and scratches should be avoided to prevent scratches and breakage.
Amber Amber is an ancient jewelry material. As a gem, it has a history of nearly 6000 years. Decorations made of amber have been unearthed in many ancient tombs in China, Greece and Egypt. Women in ancient Rome had the habit of holding precious stones in their hands. The reason is that amber will give off a faint fragrance when heated at the temperature of the palm. The ancient Romans gave amber a very high value, and a small statue carved with amber was more valuable than a strong slave. Amber can also relieve pain and relieve shock. In some places, a string of amber is often hung on children's chests to ward off evil spirits and relieve shock.
Amber often appears in coal seams and is associated with coal concentrate. Fushun amber is mainly produced in tertiary coal seams containing amber in the early Cenozoic, especially in Baltic countries in Europe, and it is produced in other countries such as North America, the United States, India, New Zealand and Myanmar. Amber from China is produced in Fushun, Liaoning and Nanyang, Henan. Amber produced in Fushun is yellow to golden yellow, and often contains insects. It is a very precious variety with a beautiful appearance. The quality of amber produced in Nanyang is poor, so it can only be used as medicine and made into pressed amber.
[Edit this paragraph] Distinguish amber from real amber.
1. Experiment: Natural amber is very light. If you put it (without any inlay) in water, it will sink to the bottom. But you don't have to worry. When you add dissolved brine to it, when the salt concentration is greater than 1 4 (1 salt, 4 parts water), the real amber will float slowly, but the fake amber will not.
2. Sound: Amber chains or beads without inlay will make a soft and slightly dull sound when gently rubbed in your hands. If the sound of plastic or resin is crisp.
3. Incense: Amber has only a faint smell, and it can hardly be smelled when rubbed, or it can't be smelled at all. Amber that produces fragrance when rubbed is called "Xiangpo". Generally, amber only emits a loose fragrance when it burns.
4. Visual inspection: This is a trick to identify true and false amber; The texture, color depth, transparency and refractive index of true amber will change with the observation angle and illumination. This feeling can't be found in any other substance. Just as we distinguish between true and false people, for example, superb artists can create lifelike wax figures, and "confusing the false with the true" is just talk, and even the best wax figures can't escape our eyes. Amber is transparent but moist, unlike glass, crystal and diamond, which can be seen at a glance. Fake amber is either transparent or opaque, and the color is fake when it dies. Artificial fake amber is dazzling, and it will feel lifeless cold light.
5. Ultraviolet irradiation: put amber under the money detector, it will have fluorescence, light green, green, blue, white and so on. Plastic fake amber does not change color.
6. Friction with static electricity: Amber can attract small pieces of paper after rubbing on clothes.
7. Feel: Amber is a neutral gem, which is generally neither too cold nor too hot. Glass imitations will have a cold feeling.
Content Quoted from-Jewelry Box (www.zhubaohe.com)
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[Edit this paragraph] Traditional Chinese Medicine
Alias blood amber, blood amber, red amber, light amber.
Resin of Pinaceae, a fossil substance buried in the stratum for a long time. After digging, remove impurities.
Irregular blocks, granules or polygons of different sizes. Blood red, tan or dark brown, almost transparent. Crispy texture, smooth section, glass-like luster, can be ground into powder. Odorless, light in taste, crisp and sandy when chewed. Insoluble in water, flammable, explosive with sound, emitting white smoke, with a slight pine fragrance.
Sweet and flat in nature.
Functions mainly include sedation, diuresis and blood circulation. Used for convulsion, epilepsy, palpitation, insomnia, dysuria, dysuria, hematuria and amenorrhea.
Usage and dosage: 0.5 ~ 1 RMB. Take it in the form of pills and powder.
Remarks: (1) There is a kind of "Fushun Po" in the northeast, also known as "Qianjin Zhai coal Po" and "bituminous coal concentrate", which is excavated from coal seams. Hard weight, black color, burning black smoke and gas, different from the source of amber, not suitable for amber medicine.
Excerpted from the National Collection of Chinese Herbal Medicine
[Edit this paragraph] Preservation and maintenance of amber
Qu Chengzhi
Amber has low hardness and is afraid of falling and bumping. It should be stored separately, not with diamonds or other sharp or hard jewelry. Amber ornaments are afraid of high temperature and should not be placed in the sun or next to the heater for a long time. If the air is too dry, it will crack easily. Try to avoid fluctuating temperature difference. Try not to touch alcohol, gasoline, kerosene and organic solutions such as nail polish, perfume, hair gel and pesticides containing alcohol. Take off amber jewelry when spraying perfume or hair gel.
Friction between amber and hard objects will make its surface rough and produce fine marks, so don't clean amber with hard objects such as brushes or toothbrushes. When amber is stained with dust and sweat, it can be soaked in warm water with neutral detergent, washed by hand and wiped clean with a soft cloth. Finally, drop a small amount of olive oil or tea oil, gently wipe the amber surface, and then wipe off the excess oil stains with a cloth to restore luster. The best way to maintain amber is to wear it for a long time, because human oil can make amber brighter and brighter.