One of the newest jewelry trends is setting warm-colored gemstones in silver, rather than gold. Amber can range in color from dark brown to a light, almost clear, lemon yellow. Most amber that has been used in jewelry is from the region of the Baltic Sea or the Dominican Republic. Amber is one of the few substances considered a gem that is not of mineral origin (diamond, jet, pearl, and ivory being the others).


Amber and Sterling Silver Flower Pin
Beautiful Honey, Green, and Yellow Amber set in Sterling Silver, features 9 pieces of polished amber. Pin measures approximately 2.25" long by 1.25" wide.
$39

Amber from the Baltic is older and more valuable but amber from the Dominican Republic is more likely to have insect inclusions, which are prized by collectors. The largest mine in the Baltic region is in Russia, west of Kaliningrad. Baltic amber is found in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Russia, and occasionally washed up on the shores of the Baltic Sea as far away as Denmark, Norway, and England.


Amber and Sterling Silver Butterfly Pin
Honey, Yellow, and Green Amber set in .925 silver. Features carved multicolor polished amber stones set in a beautiful Silver Butterfly pin. Pin. Measures approximately 1.5" long by 2" wide.
$38

Physical Properties
All Amber began as a sticky resin that oozed from ancient pine trees. Small insects, plant material, feathers, and other small objects in the path of the flow became entrapped. Over time, through a process of heat and pressure, the resin was encased in dirt and debris, and fossilized to become amber.


Green, Yellow, and Honey Amber Sterling Silver Pendant
Pendant set in .925 silver features 3 polished amber pieces set in a spiral sterling silver setting. Pendant measures approximately 1.5" long by .75" wide.
$22

Amber is very soft and can be scratched easily. Bracelets and rings with amber cabochons should be worn with care to prevent marring the stone. Much of the amber used in commercial jewelry is actually reconstituted - made by fusing small chips, powder, and ground-up stones with a plastic resin - which makes it harder and less prone to scratching. Reconstituted amber usually doesn't have natural inclusions.

Mystical Properties
Amber stirs the soul, delights the eye, and warms the heart: it's the living stone. It radiates sun and solar energy, transmutes negative into positive energy, and promotes positive thinking. A good luck charm for travelers, Amber revitalizes mind, body, and soul and helps to relieve depression. It gives pain relief for teething children, and aids in healing wounds.

Amber was made popular by the film Jurassic Park, when dinosaur DNA was pulled from a mosquito embedded in amber. Most amber around the world was formed in the Tertiary period, Eocene to Miocene (30-40 million years), although some amber has been found as old as 60-80 million years.

Amber is probably the first gemstone to be worn as jewelry - it was used in adornment making as far ago as Neolithic epoch of the Bronze and the Iron Ages. Especially wide application in producing jewelry and artistic items from amber is found in 17th and 18th centuries. Not only used for jewelry, Amber was applied as a decorative stone for trim in the interior of unique buildings, such as the Amber Room in the Palace of Ekaterina the Great.