COLOURS

This is what Roman scientist Pliny the Elder wrote on the value of amber at the very beginning of the first millennium:

"...neither white amber, that was used as a fragrant incense, nor turbid yellow or dark was as valuable as transparent, slightly glossy amber. If you held a piece of such amber to a fire, you would see only the reflection of, rather than the flame itself (...) Most popular was transparent amber having the shade of Falernian wine. It was the most expensive (...) Amber was made whiter by immersing it into preheated goat fat with alkanet dye."

Usually Baltic amber is yellow or bright yellowish. The colours of amber range from white, yellow, brown to red. There is greenish, bluish, gray and even black amber. Even more subtle shades and combinations are among them. Amber can be absolutely transparent or absolutely opaque. Amber is not always one-coloured: the unique combinations of two or more colours and shades, patterns (sometimes they form the most brilliant compositions of art) can be found. For these reasons amber becomes attractive, charming and unique.

Tree resins are the main amber material. They are transparent, bright yellow-the colour of fresh honey. This colour (clear amber) remains after the resin is transformed into amber, however variations in the resins could affect it:

• Resins were made turbid by volatile elements, which had been evaporating (colour shades can change from yellow to absolute white).

• Various admixtures that got into resins could make their own alterations (blue, green, black, and brown).

• Oxidation could darken, concentrate previous colour (red, black, rich yellow).

Various admixtures and main structural amber elements-very small turpenine gas bubbles change the colour of amber. In a certain density and form they defract the light, which is seen as some kind of colour.

What is amber?
Formation
Morphology
Inclusions
Colours
From soil and water
Treatment
Real or not?
Qualities
Amber routes
Archeological finds
Amber in
medicine
Relatives throughout the World
Museum in museum

Transparent (with a yellowish shade). This colour of amber could be called "primary"- fresh tree resins are like this. About 10% of amber are transparent, but this is mostly found in small pieces. Big transparent amber pieces are especially rare and valuable. The shade of transparency could change from yellowish to dark red; it depends on the degree of amber oxidation. Inclusions are usually found in foliated transparent amber.

Red. natural red shade is especially rare (0.5%). Red shades can vary from orange to dark black. This colour of amber is mostly obtained artificially by heating transparent amber (oxidizing it).

Yellow. this is the most common colour of amber (about 70% of all colours). As a rule this amber is cloudy, not transparent, it occurs in various shades of yellow. This amber is an inherent part of national female costume.

White. White amber is very rare (about 1-2% of all amber). Usually this amber is distinguished by its variety of textures and "natural ornamentation". Amber of this colour is also called "Royal" or "Bony". It could be with some "colourful intrusions" (yellow, black, blue, green, transparent amber) with interesting patterns.

Blue. This is the rarest shade of amber and the most valuable (only 0.2% of all amber). Most Frequently this shade is found in white amber.

Green. Greenish amber is also rare (about 2% of all colours). Green transparent amber is very interesting, as it has "sugar structure".

Black. This is a frequent colour of amber (about 15%). It is attractive because of it is natural - the largest part of black amber consists of the remains of tree barks and vegetably matter.

Literature