Baltic amber is fossilised tree resin found around the southern and eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, especially in the Kaliningrad region, Poland and Lithuania. Formed over tens of millions of years, it ranges in colour from pale lemon and cloudy butterscotch to deep cognac and cherry red, and sometimes contains preserved insects or plant fragments.
Amber has been traded across Europe since prehistoric times and was highly valued by the Romans. From the medieval period onwards it was carved into rosary beads, boxes, cups and devotional objects, and in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries craftsmen in Königsberg and Danzig produced spectacular cabinets, caskets and panels, the most famous being the lost Amber Room created for the Prussian court. Antique amber beads, brooches and carvings are widely collected today. Because amber is valuable, many imitations exist, including copal, pressed or reconstituted amber, glass and early plastics such as Bakelite and celluloid. Testing should be done carefully by a specialist. Amber is soft and sensitive to heat, solvents and perfume, so it should be stored separately and cleaned only with a soft, damp cloth.
