What it is confused with
Copal (younger tree resin), plastic and glass. Amber floats in strongly salted water while glass and most plastics sink.
Golden yellow to deep orange-brown
Amber crystals
Amber is fossilized tree resin — organic, not mineral, golden yellow to deep orange-brown, rated 2–2.5 on the Mohs scale. Traditionally, it is associated with warmth, recovery and carrying the past lightly — attributed, not demonstrated.
- Mohs hardness
- 2–2.5 window glass scratches it
- Crystal system
- Amorphous
- Pliny, AD 77
- Book 37.11 as “sucinum”
- Main sources today
- Baltic coast also Dominican Republic, Myanmar
Pliny, Natural History, tr. Bostock and Riley.
Properties
Composition
Fossilized tree resin — organic, not mineral
Hardness (Mohs)
2–2.5
Crystal system
Amorphous
Color
Golden yellow to deep orange-brown
Main sources
Baltic coast, Dominican Republic, Myanmar, Mexico
Worth knowing
Baltic amber is 44 million years old and frequently contains trapped insects. Rub it and it holds a static charge — the Greek word for amber, elektron, gave us electricity.
History
Traded along the Amber Road from the Baltic to the Mediterranean since the Bronze Age.
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Buying
Buying Amber: fakes, value and treatments
What decides the price
Clarity, color and inclusions; genuine insects in amber are valuable, which is why they are also faked.
Where it is used
Jewelry and decorative panels; amber was also once dissolved to make varnish.
A less familiar fact
The Amber Room of the Catherine Palace near St Petersburg was looted in the Second World War and never found; a reconstruction opened in 2003.
Practical
Caring for Amber
How to clean it
Wipe with a soft dry cloth. No solvents, no ultrasonic — amber is soft and dissolves in some cleaners.
How to tell it is real
The saltwater test: amber floats in heavily salted water while plastic and glass sink. Real amber also builds a static charge when rubbed.
How hard is Amber?
Amber is fossil resin, not a mineral, and no harder than a fingernail. Solvents, perfume and heat damage it, so it is wiped with a dry cloth and kept apart from other jewelry. Among the stones in this reference, the next softer is Selenite (2) and the next harder Lepidolite (2.5–3).
Amber, at 2–2.5, is harder than 1 of the other 42 stones here and softer than 41.
Primary source
What Pliny the Elder wrote about Amber
“Amber is produced from a marrow discharged by trees belonging to the pine genus, like gum from the cherry, and resin from the ordinary pine. It is a liquid at first, which issues forth in considerable quantities, and is gradually hardened by heat or cold, or else by the action of the sea…”
Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, translated by John Bostock and H. T. Riley (London: H. G. Bohn, 1855–57), book 37, chapter 11 — read the original text.
Pliny was right: amber is fossilised tree resin. The Baltic amber Rome imported comes from conifers that grew tens of millions of years ago. Who Pliny was and why we quote him →
Traditional associations
Amber is traditionally associated with warmth, recovery and carrying the past lightly. Chakra in crystal practice: Solar Plexus, Sacral. Element: Fire.
Questions about Amber
What is Amber made of?
Fossilized tree resin — organic, not mineral, with no crystal structure (amorphous).
Where does Amber come from?
Baltic coast, Dominican Republic, Myanmar, Mexico.
Can Amber be worn every day?
Not in a ring. At 2–2.5 on the Mohs scale it is better kept for pendants, earrings or display, away from solvents, perfume and heat.
Sources
Statements of fact on this page were checked against these sources in October 2026. How we choose and check sources: editorial policy.
Cite this page
AstroHot. “Amber Crystals: Meaning, Hardness and Origins.” Accessed October 28, 2026. https://astrohot.com/crystals/gemstones/amber/
For Wikipedia
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