Beeswax, or beeswax, is a variety of amber. Opaque or translucent amber is called beeswax, which is a liquefied stone of resin and amorphous. There is no fixed internal atomic structure and external shape, and the fracture surface is often shell-shaped, and the refractive index is between 1.54 ~ 1.55, so birefringence is not applicable.
According to the physical test, the specific gravity of beeswax is between 1.05- 1. 10, which is only slightly larger than water and is a precious ornament.
Distribution of origin
The most common beeswax is yellow beeswax produced in the Baltic Sea and northern Europe. Generally only yellow, and even some are translucent. The beeswax there is about four or five million years old. Due to the relatively recent formation time, such beeswax has not been completely petrified and its texture is still relatively soft. Among beeswax, it's just cheaper.
Real rare beeswax is generally produced in the Middle East, such as Iran, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Pakistan, Africa and so on. The colors are varied because of the different minerals buried in the geology. These rare beeswax were formed 40 million to 50 million years ago, even 1 100 million years ago. However, their quantity is very rare, and they have extremely high collection value.
The origin of beeswax
Geological research shows that many conifers, such as conifers and maples, grew on the earth in Eocene and Cretaceous from 30 million to/kloc-0.0 billion years ago. These trees were strongly stimulated by the outside world in a certain geological period, and secreted a large amount of fat liquid. With the change of geological strata, these fat liquids fell to the ground and were buried deep underground. After more than 30,000 to 40,000 years of formation pressure and heat, these fatty liquids were petrified into beeswax mines. Geological research also shows that beeswax was first formed in Cretaceous about 1 100 million years ago, and was formed in Miocene about 20 million years ago at the latest. The beeswax formed in Miocene has been relatively soft (Dominican beeswax is one of them). After that, due to the sharp decline of coniferous forests and the lack of petrochemical time, the strata movement gradually stabilized and the formation of beeswax became less and less.
Since ancient times, beeswax has been deeply loved by royal families, nobles, collectors and people all over the world. It is not only used as jewelry such as hand ornaments and neck ornaments, but also praised and respected unanimously because of its mysterious power. It is an ornament used by the royal family in past dynasties, and it is also a sacred blessing of religion, which makes the wearer and collector get incomparable luck and wealth. Therefore, there has always been a saying in Europe that "a thousand years of amber, a million years of beeswax". Beeswax has set off a global collection boom in this century, and its value has been rising. The texture and colorful charm of beeswax are comparable to diamonds and jadeite, but its mysterious power and spirituality are not available in other jewelry, which can be described as the most beautiful and precious jewelry. Although human beings discovered and used beeswax very early in history, their understanding of what beeswax is and its origin is very limited, and some of them are simply wrong. Beewax has always been covered with a thick veil. It was not until modern times, with the development of modern science such as chemistry, physics and geology, that human beings uncovered the mystery of beeswax with scientific knowledge and means.
After the formation of beeswax, in the long years, it has experienced various tempering of crustal ups and downs, sun and rain, and impact of glaciers and rivers. Some of them are exposed on the ground and some are buried underground. Some beeswax exposed to the surface is washed into the sea to become Haizhu, some into the lake to become lake beads, and then buried underground to become mineral beads (mostly in sedimentary strata and coal measures strata). Beeswax has undergone various changes during its formation and in the long years since, due to environmental factors such as soil, water, organic matter, inorganic matter, sunlight, geothermal and so on. In addition to the matrix or resin (petrochemical), other things such as color, specific gravity, hardness and melting point have some differences, which are very mysterious. The ancients could never get a reasonable explanation. Only modern chemistry and physics have revealed the mystery and analyzed it. In the world, different places and different times, beeswax has different names. In China, beeswax has several different names since ancient times, such as amber, amber, beeswax, jade, Zhu Jiang, Dunmou, Yu Pei and red rosin. This shows the complexity of names, as well as differences in place and time. Tracing back to history, it was in the Paleolithic Age a long time ago that human beings found that beeswax sleeping underground entered the category of human life, was recognized and used by human beings, and formed beeswax culture.
In China, there is no information about when the prehistoric ancestors discovered and used beeswax. The earliest ancient book that recorded beeswax (called "Yu Pei") was Shan Hai Jing, but the author of the book is unknown and the age of the work is inconclusive. There are still different opinions in the whole book, so it is difficult to judge when beeswax was discovered and used in ancient China in Shan Hai Jing. In fact, "Shan Hai Jing Nan Shan Jing" also records: "Among them, there are many educations and no defects." That is to say, the ancient southern mountainous areas in China are rich in beeswax, and ancestors also like to wear it. From long-term wearing experience, we realize that beeswax has therapeutic effects. In the case of underdeveloped ancient medicine, it takes a long time to accumulate experience. Therefore, although there are few ancient materials, relying on the recent Classic of Mountains and Seas, we can preliminarily conclude that China ancestors discovered and used beeswax as early as the late Stone Age and the Bronze Age (Shang and Zhou Dynasties). According to modern scientific research, it is known that beeswax was made from the fat sap of coniferous trees such as pine trees and maple trees buried deep underground in the Eocene geological era, which is tens of millions to hundreds of millions years ago. The Eocene in geology is still the wild period of the earth. Not only did humans not come out, but even many animals did not appear later.
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Geological research shows that many conifers, such as conifers and maples, grew on the earth in Eocene and Cretaceous from 30 million to/kloc-0.0 billion years ago. These trees were strongly stimulated by the outside world in a certain geological period, and secreted a lot of fat liquid, which fell to the ground with the change of geological layer and was buried deep underground. After more than 30,000 to 40,000 years of formation pressure and heat, these fatty liquids were petrified into beeswax mines. Geological research also shows that beeswax was first formed in Cretaceous about 1 100 million years ago, and was formed in Miocene about 20 million years ago at the latest. The beeswax formed in Miocene has been relatively soft (Dominican beeswax is one of them). Later, due to the sharp decline of coniferous forests, the lack of petrochemical time and the gradual stability of stratigraphic movement, the formation of beeswax became less and less.
After the formation of beeswax, in the long years, it has experienced various tempering of crustal movement, sun and rain, and impact of glaciers and rivers. Some of them are exposed on the surface and some are buried underground. Some beeswax exposed to the surface is washed into the sea to become Haizhu, some into the lake to become lake beads, and then buried underground to become mineral beads (mostly in sedimentary strata and coal measures strata). Beeswax has undergone various changes during its formation and in the long years since, due to environmental factors such as soil, water, organic matter, inorganic matter, sunlight, geothermal and so on. In addition to the matrix or resin (petrochemical), other things such as color, specific gravity, hardness and melting point have some differences, which are very mysterious. The ancients could never get a reasonable explanation. Only modern chemistry and physics have revealed the mystery and analyzed it.
Reasons for the formation of various colors of beeswax
The rich colors of beeswax are unknown now and may not be known in the future. Because the earth began to form when it was still in the flood period, and in the long years after that, the influence of various factors in the universe on the germplasm and color of beeswax was extremely complicated and difficult to trace. I believe that with human intelligence and technology, even in the long term, it is impossible to reveal all its secrets. This is also why beeswax always maintains mysterious charm to some extent, attracting all beings to maintain eternal interest and in-depth thinking.
However, as far as some explanations have been confirmed by technology at present, the answers are as follows:
1. The yellow color of beeswax with more succinic acid is darker than that with less succinic acid; The strong acid beeswax in stratum soil is dark yellow.
2. If the original wax is buried in the "blue soil layer" for a long time (Oligocene layer, loose sand containing mica and calcium), it will gradually turn blue due to the influence of calcium and titanium oxide in the sand.
3. The so-called "blue soil layer" is not blue, but its calcium (including carbonic acid), titanium oxide and other components can turn the original wax into blue.
4. The invasion of sulfur and sulfide into beeswax can make it green or even blue-purple, and the infiltration of copper sulfate will also make it green.
5. Infiltrate iron ore, cinnabar or manganese to make it red, brown, brown and brown.
6. The color that has been baked by geothermal heat for a long time is deep; People who have been buried in the snow for a long time are mostly khaki, brown, red and beige because they are less affected by geothermal energy.
7. In the stratum with more humus, beeswax is mostly brown, even black and dark green; Hidden in coal seams and ashes, it is dark gray.
8. The colors that float in the water for a long time (such as sea slope and amber) will be lighter; Those near the volcano will also change color and have more fluorescence.
When two or more colors invade the resin at the same time and merge into one, there will be countless discoloration. Some beeswax will change color in response to different light sources (such as aquamarine blue, Smurfs, green elves and so on). ). The variety of colors of beeswax itself makes the viewing direction different, such as looking up and looking down, and the colors you see are different. Amber is one of them. Long-term wear, get the care of the public, the color will become more oily and shiny, crystal clear. Beeswax will automatically change color over time, such as blood-stained amber, and the color will generally become darker; Exposure to the wilderness, long-term sun and rain, the color will gradually fade.
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Due to different producing areas, there are many varieties of beeswax. The richness and magical changes of colors also make beeswax look more diverse, more attractive, better cater to different preferences and needs of different people, and give people more fun and fun.
Yellow, red, blue, cyan, white, red, black, purple, green and orange are all common basic colors in the universe, and yellow is the most common one. The resin itself is light yellow, mostly yellow in the deep soil, which has the greatest influence on the color of beeswax. As shown in figure 1, giant yellow wax beads, this bead ***34, are yellow wax beads, which are very pure in texture, translucent under strong light, flowing with gold wires, and some are in the form of clouds, which are very beautiful. Each seed is about 3 cm long and jujube-shaped. An old-fashioned seed has a small red burn mark, which indicates that the quality is natural and pure, and the mineral content is high. Golden yellow is the true color of Buddhism, and it is a string of very solemn beads. Because the beads are too big, they are not used for pinching, but as treasures of temples, houses and shops, symbolizing good luck. It belongs to the rare best.
However, although the above basic colors of beeswax are readily available, they are still not enough to reflect the richness of its colors. Different colors * * * exist in the same piece of beeswax, and the resulting discoloration and discoloration make the colors of beeswax countless. Not only that, but even monochromatic beeswax has different shades. If you use different light sources, the color of beeswax will be different. For example, some blue crystals and green crystals will turn purple when irradiated with tungsten filament light (light from electric bulbs and flashlights). In addition, the observer will see different colors in different directions. Moreover, some beeswax can only make viewers feel that a certain color of light and shadow shines as if nothing had happened, but there is no actual color body.
As an organic treasure, beeswax is very different from inorganic treasures in chemical composition and atomic structure, but there are many similarities in jewelry characteristics. From the gloss point of view, beeswax is mostly wax resin (turpentine) luster, but there are also bright glass luster (glass surface beeswax), metal luster (gold surface beeswax) and mercury luster (pure black beeswax). The luster of jewelry is related to the way of light reflection and the degree of surface polishing. The same is true of beeswax, such as black wax and aquamarine blue. Only after a high degree of polishing can the surface of mercury shine, otherwise it will be dull.
Most of the colors of jewelry are beautiful and charming (including the so-called "colorless"), and different colors are related to different ingredients. If there are multiple pigments at the same time, there will be multiple colors. Beeswax is no exception. What I want to point out here is the multi-color and interference phenomenon of jewelry color. The so-called "multicolor" means that some jewelers can have two or more colors and tones from different angles. So is beeswax. For example, the back of Smurfs looks blue and the front looks purple. Smurfs are mainly produced in Iran and other countries. Due to low production, they usually only make bracelets and rosaries, and necklaces for more than 30 children are hard to find. This is a high-quality product. As for the "interference phenomenon", it is the reflection of the internal structure of the gem on the light, which makes the jewelry show colorful colors, such as moonstone, opal, albite, etc., all of which show colorful iridescence due to the interference of light. Beeswax also has color changes caused by bubbles, cracks and holes, giving people a special aesthetic feeling.
In addition, in terms of conforming to the concept of gemstones, beeswax has advantages, although it has weaknesses, which basically conforms to the main conceptual conditions of gemstones. To be regarded as a gem, a natural mineral must have three conditions: beauty, preciousness and durability, which constitute the basic elements of the concept of gem. Among all gems, the durability of beeswax is almost the last, which is its weakness. But it has advantages that other gems don't have. For example, some beeswax sparkles; Some are subtle and elegant; Some have multiple colors at the same time, especially those with flashing light and shadow. Color seems to be absent, and its beauty is like a dream; Some beeswax is not only multicolored, but also has different reactions to different light sources. Beauty and magic are unique features of beeswax, which are not found in many other jewels. Pure pink beeswax is rare and is a national treasure of Iran. Its value is no less than that of rubies from India and Myanmar, and its export has been strictly restricted. Being owned by users and collectors is a blessing.