Amber

Alongside other precious materials such as pearls and coral, amber is an organic gemstone formed through biological rather than geological processes. Amber comes from the hardened resin of ancient trees.

Amber is one of the oldest materials used as gemstones in jewellery (it has been in use for some 13 000 years), particularly because it is easy to shape and possesses a naturally “gemmy” transparent/translucent oily lustre.

A kind of natural polymer, it is often remarked upon that amber feels quite unlike other gemstones—it is warm and feels soft in the hand. Astonishingly, although amber can be hundreds of millions of years old, it can also contain inclusions of biological matter trapped in the tree resin, including leaves and other plant matter, insects, spiders, lizards, feathers, and even mammalian hairs.

Amber can thus give us a snapshot of life on Earth as it was even at a time when humans did not yet exist.

The connection amber gives us to the history of life on Earth and the beauty living things can create is of immeasurable value, it reminds us that we as individuals and as a species are connected to the Earth and all that is in it, even when our daily schedules and technologies sometimes make us feel separate from that lineage.

It reminds us that we owe our existence to those ancient trees that produced oxygen for us, and to those ancient bugs and biological detritus that were crucial for their ecosystems. The power of life is palpable when wearing bright and glowing amber.