GENUINE AMBER: TESTING FOR TRUE AMBER

Recently, some controversy has risen on whether some recent discoveries in South America and other parts of the world should be named amber or copal (which is tree resin which has not yet fully fossilized to amber and may be anything from 3 to 4 million years old). Some plastic imitations of amber have also become available on the market.
There are a number of simple tests that can be made on amber to verify its authenticity. Other tests are available but they require laboratory equipment to carry them out. Here’s several tests that can be performed on an genuine amber jewelry piece:

1. First of all, amber possesses a hardness on Moh’s scale in the region of 2 -3.An appropriate scratch stick will help in determining the number for each piece.
2. If a needlepoint is heated up in a flame until it is glowing red, and then pushed the point into the sample for testing amber can be identified from copal. With copal the needle melts the material quicker than amber and omits a light odor.
3. Solubility of the piece may be tested, as copal will dissolve in acetone, while amber will remain unaffected when acetone is applied.
4. When passed through a short-wave Ultra Violet (UV) light, copal will show very little color change, while amber will fluoresce a pale shade of blue.
5. When the specimen tested is rubbed vigorously on a soft cloth, it will reveal whether it is amber or copal. Amber may omit a faint resinous fragrance while copal may actually begin to soften and become sticky. Amber will become heavily charged with static electricity.
6. Tasting the amber is another way of knowing if it is authentic. After washing the amber in soapy water and then plain water, if the piece is made from plastic or other chemicals, it will have a very unpleasant and chemical taste. Amber does not have a particular taste at all.
7. Mixing 23 grms of table salt with 200ml of luke warm water and stirring until dissolved, and later placing amber in this mixture, will result in amber floating. Copals and various plastics will typically sink.
8. Finally, amber has inclusions of animals and plants. Correctly identifying the trapped flora or fauna will serve as an excellent indicator of the piece’s authenticity.  Most of the amber pieces have species that are now extinct, or that have significantly adapted to the new environment.  Amber frequently has stellate hairs that are released by oak buds in their early growth.
9. When placing a piece of amber between two sheets of polarizing glass or plastic, you can then rotate one of the lenses slowly in 360 degrees. In the amber’s body, there will be a rainbow of colors that should cycle through the transparent parts of the material. This is due to interference patterns that are induced in the polarized light because of strains and stresses within the amber itself. Both Cobal and Amber will show this color changes, while some other polymers and plastics will not.
10. Taking a sharp knife to shave off a tiny piece of the amber will also help as proof. Real amber fractures and splinters, while plastic and polymers cut can be removed without splintering the piece.