From a slash in a tree, millions of years ago, resin oozed, accumulated and, over time, hardened into that most prized and beautiful of gems — amber.

            These days, it’s hard to believe there’s anyone left who hasn’t heard of amber thanks to Steven Spielberg’s epic movie Jurassic Park, in which a range of dinosaurs were cloned from the dinosaur blood found inside a mosquito caught in amber millions of years earlier. Local dealers still talk of the “Jurassic Park effect” which contributes to the gems ongoing popularity.

            In fact it is these organic inclusions —insects, lichens, pieces of moss, seeds, leaves and pine needles — that constitute one of the primary fascinations people have for the gem. Amber with such inclusions is not only a prize to the gem fancier, however, but is also a valuable tool to the zoologists and geologists because it offers a window into a bygone age.

            The ancient Greeks and Romans, not imagining the long journey through the ages of this gem — which was already adorning the necks and wrists of noblewomen and inspiring men of poetry and science — invented a legend to explain its origin.

            “Phaethon, the dearest son of Apollo, was given permission by his father to drive his fire cart in the sky. Due to his lack of skill, the young Phaethon caused serious damage to the earth. A furious Zeus struck him with lightning, throwing his lifeless body down to the banks of the river Eridanus (Po).

            “There, the mourning Hellas sisters grieved over him for a long time, until the King of Gods, still angry, turned them into poplars, whose tears condensed into bright amber gems.”

            The ancient Geeks were aware of the capacity of amber — or electron as they called it — to attract small particles when rubbed and when, much later, through the research of these properties, a new source of energy was found, it was called electricity after the gem which made its discovery possible.

            The main source of amber is in Koenigsberg on the Samland coast in East Prussia. The amber from this region is known as succinite. Amber in this district is obtained by open-pit mining and also harvested from the sea. Amber, being of low density, is carried by the tides and currents of the ocean as far as Norway, Denmark, and even as far as the east coast of England.

            Amber is also found along the Simeto river in Sicily. This reddish-brown amber is known as simetite, after the river on which it is found, and is prized for its unique color and fluorescent appearance.