A Guide to the Properties of the Amber Gemstone

A Guide to the Properties of the Amber Gemstone

The amber gemstone is as delicate as it is beautiful, this article talks about the properties of amber and some interesting facts surrounding the gemstone.

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When asked, many people would immediately consider amber a gemstone. While we will hear the term "amber gemstone" thrown around a lot, it's not actually 100% true.

Many realize that amber - known for it's glowing warm tone - is in fact not a stone, but a fossilized resin from ancient trees. The oldest known amber dates back to 300 million years old.

You'll find young amber stones date back to less than 100,000 years old, but the more valuable pieces will date back to older than that.

It might blow your mind to realize that a piece of jewelry you just bought could have such an old history and contain such energy.

This article will guide you on your journey of understanding amber and will shed some light on the amber stone, it's properties and much more.

Let's get started.

Why is Amber so Special?

You might wonder why so many people use amber in jewelry. The answer that is the most obvious is that amber is very old, and therefore possesses an immense energy.

Many believe that amber brings with it the stored wisdom of the whole earth and all of the creates who live in it.

Some unique pieces of amber contain small insects like ants or mosquitos trapped from when the amber started as tree resin;this gives the amber some powerful magical properties.

You'll find the warm colors of amber like yellow, orange and the warm brown tones are the most popular. The warm sun like colors is what made many consider amber to be the stone of the sun.

Even though many know amber for it warm orange tones, you can still find amber stones in blue, green and red colors also. You will find that a lot of jewelry makers treat their amber jewelry with color.

You can still find many examples of stunning jewelry pieces made with natural amber in other vibrant colors to the well-known orange. 

Where Does Amber Originate From?

Most of the high-quality amber found in supply originates from the Northern Europian countries such as Lithuania, Britain, Poland, Italy, and Germany.

You can also find the amber gemstone in The Dominican Republic which is home to the very rare blue amber.

Mystical Properties of Amber Gemstones

You may already know that a lot of popular gemstones have a history of use in a wide variety of different cultures. Many believe gemstones' to have powerful mystical properties and amber is no different.

In Asian culture, they call amber the 'soul of the tiger,' and many looked to it as the stone of courage. Many people would travel with pieces of amber for protection on any long journeys.

Amber was also used to treat rheumatism, deafness, jaundice, headaches, bleeding teeth, and problems with digestion.

Many believe amber has a number of mystical properties;it's believed amber can:

• Balance emotions
• Attract good luck
• Eliminate fears
• Clear the mind
• Relieve headaches
• Dissolve any negative energy
• Help to develop patience and wisdom

Of all these traits, however, the biggest take away for many is the warm energy that people feel from the gem.

Amber is the birthstone of a Taurus, but some classify it as the birthstone for the astrological sign Cancer. This is since it reflects any energy that you get in the northern hemisphere in the warmest months.

It's thought that the orange-gold colors inside the amber stabilize your physical body's higher energies. This influences Taurus' by offering them protection and balance while also calming them.

If you find that the warm energies of the amber gemstone pull you to it, you can explore the different types of jewelry and see what it does to your energy.

Why People Use Amber

It's an important question to ask as to why people would choose to use amber. Many people opt to have amber in jewelry and styling gemstone jewelry can be a challenge. You can use amber in your home as part of an ornament or simply in gem form.

As amber possesses warm, cheerful and wise protective energies, you will find that it can discharge any negative moods in your home and deflect those energies away from yourself.

It's thought that the amber stone will work hard to surround you with positive and strong energy.

Nowadays, many people will turn to amber to use if they are suffering from depression. The stone's natural energies can help to stabilize your emotions and act as a constant reminder of why your life is precious.

The energies of amber gemstones help to guide you through your emotions and help to give you a more confident outlook on life.

How Amber Can Help You

There are a number of different ways in which amber can help you. Whether you are seeking creativity, confidence, positivity or just reassurance, this natural element has helped in all of those areas.

Using Amber For Health and Healing

Amber stones possess an electromagnetic quality;this means that the stone can build up an electromagnetic charge. This meant that ancient cultures used these stones as a form of healing.

In modern times, many people use amber as an alternative to modern medicine. Many use amber to stimulate metabolism which can help towards any metabolic issues.

It's also a treatment used against allergies, especially focusing on respiratory based problems.

Amber is also used to relieve headaches, and even ease the pain of patients with arthritis and who have ligament and joint pain too.

There have also been people who have used amber for impotence and trying to tackle female infertility.

Amber, The Stone of Manifestation

Many people have often associated amber with the accumulation of wealth. Known as the stone of manifestation, it's a powerful stone that can help you to manifest an increase in your income flow or other forms of wealth.

It's important to remember that you can receive wealth in all forms, not just monetary. This stone will also help you to use your talents and particular gifts to bring an abundance of wealth into your life.

It's also considered to dissolve any feelings of insecurity or uncertainty that you may feel, and instead, fill you with energy focused on inspiration and determination.

Many also consider amber to promote good luck and success. It removes all fears and will give you the necessary courage to take a new step forward and take calculated challenges leaving you rewarded.

Using Amber For Love and Relationships

The spiritual properties of the amber crystal bring a clear and vivid connection to the light. It uses it's warm and nurturing energy, connected to the sun's solar energy to bring a sense of warmth, health, and well-being into your life.

Using this energy, you can develop more patience and understanding in your love life. The stone can help you not lose your temper as easily. The gem can also avoid anger by infusing you with the energy of the amber stone.

A lot of the positive influence brought on by amber works towards keeping you calmer and more tolerant. If you find yourself being particularly childish or immature, then the energies of the stone can help you to purge the way you act.

Some Little Known Facts About Amber

With so many people basing their understanding of amber on its mystical properties, there is a lot more to this little element than you might know. Here are some little-known properties of amber.

1. There Are Actually Different Types Of Amber

When we discover amber in different parts of the world, we categorized it in different ways. Therefore amber you retrieve from Mexico may be a different type of amber that you picked up in Scotland.

You'll find the most common type available is Baltic amber;you find this along the coast of the Baltic Sea. You can find Baltic amber varies in age between 24 to 130 million years old. This is often referred to as the oldest amber there is.

This amber often contains large portions of succinic acid, so many people refer to this type of amber as Succinite amber. Other types of amber which don't contain this acid we call Retinite amber.

The other two areas in which you can find the largest amount of amber other than the Baltic's are the Dominican Republic and Mexico. Amber in those areas began to form around 30 million years ago from two different types of trees -- Hymenaea and Algarrobo.

2. Amber Can Float on Water

If your diamond comes out of your necklace while you're in the sea, sadly you're not got much hope of retrieving it. Baltic amber, on the other hand, can float in salted water.

This is possible because amber is so light in weight, and this can be a hugely important aspect of knowing when it comes to figuring out if amber you're buying is real or fake!

3. It Comes in Over 300 Different Colors

You might have thought that amber had just a few colors, but as we outlined earlier in the article amber is available in a ton of different colors. The reason for this variety in color is plants, and other inclusions influenced amber when forming.

The most common types of colors of amber you'll see are honey, lemon, cognac, butterscotch, cherry, and green. You'll find some sources list that there are even more than 300 shades of the resin.

The price of amber is often dictated by the color. With some colors being rarer than others, you may find that the color you want can fetch a pretty penny.

4. Amber Is a Limited Resource

Considering how widely distributed amber is across the globe, it's surprising to learn that amber is a limited resource. That means that there is only a finite amount of the stuff we can get our hands on.

This is because it requires millions of years for tree resin to form meaning that deposits of this natural gem are fading fast. It's not just due to mining processes that availability is dropping, but also because trees which contain the amber deposit are being burned or cut down.

We extracted the very top layer of Baltic amber before 1850. The majority of the modern day amber resources you can find in Kaliningrad, Russia, near the Baltic Sea. This makes up a whopping 90% of all extractable amber.

Don't start panicking just yet though, as it's thought that the amber resource levels will sustain us for at least another 300 years.

5. Amber Has a Storied History

Off all the decorative gems worn by people in ancient history, amber is one of the very first that people wore. Archaeological findings even suggest that people used amber in trading as far back as 28,000 BC.

Amber fascinated people back then with the beauty it possessed, and they strongly believed it held strong mystical powers. They backed this up by the fact that some of the features of amber they couldn't explain at the time, such as electricity.

These all helped to solidify peoples belief that the stone possessed magical powers. Throughout the years, people have still used amber in treating a variety of different illnesses.

It was commonly used in Rome for healing any head and neck illnesses, although back then the price of amber far outweighed even the worth of a slave. Egyptians also used amber in their mummification process.

Is Amber the Right Gemstone For You?

With such a variety of believed properties of amber as a gemstone, and what seems to be an endless list of benefits, is the stone of the sun the right choice for you? You can follow our amber buying guide if you think it's the right choice.

If not, you can find out more information on the jewelry options available to you, check out our other posts.