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AMBER
Mythology
There are many myths surrounding the origin of
amber. Ovid wrote that when Phaethon, a son of
Helios, the sun, convinced his father to allow
him to drive the chariot of the sun through the
heavens for a day, he erred too close to the earth,
scorching it. To save the earth, Zeus struck Phaethon
with a thunderbolt and he died, plunging out of
the sky. His mother and sister turned into trees
in their grief but still mourned him. Their tears,
dried by the sun, are amber.
The Greeks called amber 'elektron', sun-made,
perhaps because of this story, or perhaps because
it becomes electrically charged when rubbed with
a cloth and can attract small particles. Homer
mentions amber jewelry - earrings and a necklace
of amber beads - as a princely gift in the Odyssey
Another ancient writer, Nicias, said that amber
was the juice or essence of the setting sun congealed
in the sea and cast up on the shore.
The Romans sent armies to conquer and control
amber-producing areas. The Emperor Nero was a
great connoisseur of amber. During his time, according
to the Roman historian Pliny, the price of an
amber figurine, no matter how small, exceeded
the price of a healthy slave.
The ancient Germans burned amber as incense, so
they called it 'bernstein', or 'burn stone'. Clear
colorless amber was considered the best material
for rosary beads in the Middle Ages on account
of its smooth silky feel. Certain orders of knights
controlled the trade, and unauthorized possession
of raw amber was illegal in most of Europe by
the year 1400.
Metaphysical Lore
(Astrological Sign of Leo & Aquarius)
Vibrates to the number 3
Amber is believed to have metaphysical properties
that provide health, good luck and spiritual healing.
It is said to be one of the stones in the Breastplate
of The High Priest.
Amber is further related to the Archangel Uriel,
whose name means "God is Light". Uriel
heals away resentment and unforgiveness. Uriel's
aura glows a pale yellow.
It has been used as a symbol for renewal of marriage
vows and to assure promises. It has been said
to bring good luck to warriors - mentioned as
a possible stone in the Brisling necklace worn
by Freya, Goddess of the Valkyries, in Norse mythology.
It is a sacred stone to both Native American and
Eastern Indians, used in the fire ceremonies of
ancient tribal healers. It has been burned, since
medieval days, as a fumigant and incense to clear
negativity.
Medicinal Lore
Amber allows the body to heal itself by absorbing
and transmuting negative energy into positive
energy. It emits a sunny ad bright soothing energy
which helps to calm nerves and enliven disposition.
It has been used in the treatment of goiter and
other dis-eases of the throat, as well as kidney
and bladder maladies. In ancient times, it was
used as a penicillin-type remedy, being ground
and ingested.
Causes of coloration
When natural light strikes Blue Amber on a white
surface, the light particles pass right through,
and then are refracted off the white surface.
Result: the Blue Amber has a slight blue hue.
When the same natural light particles strike the
Amber on a black surface, the light particles
don't refract off the black surface, thus refracting
off the actual Amber. Hydrocarbons in the Blue
Amber turn the sun's ultraviolet light into blue
light particles, resulting in the glow of Blue
Amber.
This effect is only possible in the Dominican
Republic Blue Amber category and in some Mexican
amber . Any other Amber (such as Baltic Amber)
will not display this phenomenon, because its
original resin is not from the Hymenaea protera
tree.
The polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, produced
through a thermal polymerization process initiated
via irradiation, relax to their ground state,
absorb high-energy ultraviolet photons and re-emit
them as lower-energy visible photons, according
to the absorbance curve of the particular fluorophore.
Recently, optical absorption, fluorescence and
time-resolved fluorescence measurements in Dominican
ambers have been reported. These studies show
that the "blue" variety reveals an intense
fluorescence emission in the visible wavelength
region, between 430 and 530 nm, with spectral
features which are typical of aromatic hydrocarbons.
On the contrary, the Dominican "red"
and "yellow" amber varieties have a
much weaker and featureless emission, although
still do have a certain fluorescence. The process
in Blue Amber is surprisingly similar to phosphor.
The difference between fluorescence and phosphorescence
is basically only the amount of time that the
glowing element glows.
Although there are several theories about the
origin of Dominican blue amber, there is a great
probability that it owes its existence to elements
such as anthracene as a result of 'incomplete
combustion' due to forest fires among the extinct
species Hymenaea protera trees about 25 to 40
million years ago.
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