amber

Fossilized resin from coniferous trees of the Middle Tertiary period. It is often washed ashore on the Baltic coast with plant and animal specimens preserved in it; many extinct species have been found preserved in this way. It ranges in colour from red to yellow, and is used to make jewellery.

When amber is rubbed with cloth, it attracts light objects, such as feathers. The effect, first noticed by the ancient Greeks, is due to acquisition of negative electric charge, hence the adaptation of the Greek word for amber, elektron, for electricity (see static electricity).

Amber has been coveted for its supposed special properties since prehistoric times. Archaeologists have found amulets made of amber dating back as far as 35000 BC.

Amber's preservative properties were demonstrated 1992 when DNA was extracted from insects estimated to be around 30 million years old which were found fossilized in amber, and in 1995 US scientists succeeded in extracting bacterial spores from a bee in amber that was 40 million years old. Despite their lengthy dormancy, the bacterial spores were successfully germinated.