Amber Gemstones by Colour
This table shows the variety of hues this gemstone can be found in. Click on a photo for more information.
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Amber Gemstones by Size
This table shows distribution of Amber gemstone sizes that are listed on this site. This can give a good indication as to the general availability of this gemstone in different sizes.
Contributed photos
Lightest:1.44 cts
Heaviest:32.57 cts
Average:14.27 cts
Total photos:11
Do you have a larger Amber? Why not upload a photo?
| Amber Treatments | |
|---|---|
| Heated in oil to improve clarity, disc-like fractures: "sun spangles". Heated in nitrogen-rich atmosphere to create a darker shallow surface coloration. At darker color, higher RI, lower and darker fluorescence: LW - inert to weak yellowish-orange to dark brownish-orange. Magnification: clouds of tiny gas bubbles below surface. Coloration may fade with prolonged exposure to sunlight. Green color may be created by heat-treatment in autoclave. Reconstructed small amber pieces warmed and compressed together: immersion in alcohol reveals hazy outline and different hue of individual pieces, elongated and flattened gas bubbles. LW: strong patchy chalky blue - Blue Chart Gem Identification, Herve Nicolas Lazzarelli, 2010, p 7 | |
| Physical Properties of Amber | |
| Mohs Hardness | 2 to 3, Gemmological Tables (2004) More from other references |
| Specific Gravity | 1.05 to 1.10, Blue Chart Gem Identification (2010) More from other references |
| Fracture | Conchoidal, Gemstones (2009) |
| Optical Properties of Amber | |
| Refractive Index | 1.539 to 1.545, Blue Chart Gem Identification (2010) More from other references |
| Optical Character | Isotropic, Gemmological Tables (2004) |
| Chatoyancy | Yes, Gemmological Tables (2004) |
| Colour | |
| Colour (General) | Yellow, white, red, green, blue, brown, black, Gemmological Tables (2004) More from other references |
| Causes of Colour | Blue to green, yellow to orange to red to brown, Fluorescence under visible light in Dominican amber; blue is due to light (Rayleigh) scattering in Baltic amber Charge-transfer processes in large organic molecules, Pragmatic Spectroscopy For Gemologists (2011) |
| Transparency | Transparent,Translucent,Opaque, Gemmological Tables (2004) More from other references |
| Lustre | Resinous, Gemstones (2009) |
| Fluorescence & other light emissions | |
| Fluorescence (General) | Partly blue, Gemmological Tables (2004) |
| Fluorescence (Long-Wave UV) | Common moderate to strong (chalky)-blue to yellow-(green), Blue Chart Gem Identification (2010) |
| Crystallography of Amber | |
| Crystal System | Amorphous, Blue Chart Gem Identification (2010) |
| Inclusions in Amber | |
| Flow lines, gas bubbles, small organisms, parts of plants trapped - Blue Chart Gem Identification, Herve Nicolas Lazzarelli, 2010, p 7 Insects and pieces of plants, bubbles, discoidal stress spangles with radiating lines - Gemmological Tables, Ulrich Henn and Claudio C. Milisenda, 2004, p 8 | |
| Further Information | |
| Mineral information: | Amber information at mindat.org |