AMBER IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY

Around 1600 BC, amber became very treasured in Greece. In the odyssey, amber is described as one of the most precious materials. It was called “elektron” meaning derived from the Sun. It was believed amber was made from the tears of a nymph. Because the Greeks were the first to observe the electrostatic properties of amber, the Greek name of amber-elektron became the root word for electricity several centuries later. Baltic amber artifacts were found in the tomb of King Tutankhamon, in Mesopotamia and in Rome. Amber requires a special preservation, so most of the amber deposits deteriorated throughout time, and there is only about 20 places in the world where amber can be mined. In roman times, a miniature sculpture of a man was more expensive than a slave.