Amber and natural resin materials
Fossil resin and related natural resin materials; amber, copal, pressed products and imitations must be distinguished.
What this family is
Maturity separates amber from copal and has to be confirmed rather than assumed, since copal may not be classed as amber. Amber itself is fossil resin, not a mineral. Pressed amber, fused from fragments, may not be classed as natural amber; CIBJO recommends the name pressed amber, reconstructed amber being the Chinese standard term.
Mila is a Chinese transparency category under amber, and beeswax amber must not be used for it.
Scope of this family
Fossil resin and related natural resin materials; amber, copal, pressed products and imitations must be distinguished.
Member entries (10)
Market names not to be used as a product name
Recorded on member entries of this family. Each name links to the entry whose page explains the ruling and its source.
All misleading and prohibited trade names across the site: Misleading and prohibited trade names
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| Market name | Recorded on | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Flower amber | Patterned Amber | Not to be used in any position |
Treatments recorded on member entries
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| Treatment | Member entries | Disclosure requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Heated / Heat-treated | Amber, Amber with Animal Inclusion, Amber with Plant Inclusion, Blue Amber, Copal, Golden Amber, Green Amber, Opaque Amber, Patterned Amber, Red Amber | Heating is a common treatment, and acceptance varies by material. Whether heated ruby or sapphire must be declared separately depends on which code is followed (see the comparison on this page); unstable colour or foreign residues must be disclosed. |
| Filled / Fracture-filled | Amber, Amber with Animal Inclusion, Amber with Plant Inclusion, Blue Amber, Golden Amber, Green Amber, Opaque Amber, Patterned Amber, Red Amber | Name the filler (resin, oil, polymer, glass or lead glass) and bear in mind that fillings can be unstable and may deteriorate or change colour over time. LMHC Information Sheet #3 treats corundum with glass in two ways: glass in fissures or cavities is still reported on natural corundum as a filling, and only a badly fractured single piece infused throughout, or small fragments bound together with glass, is reported as a manufactured product. |
| Irradiated | Amber, Amber with Animal Inclusion, Amber with Plant Inclusion, Blue Amber, Golden Amber, Green Amber, Opaque Amber, Patterned Amber, Red Amber | Must be disclosed. Stability under irradiation varies by material: irradiated blue topaz keeps a stable colour and irradiated smoky quartz or coloured diamond can, but in some materials the irradiated colour fades in light or heat; colour stability must be pointed out. |
| Dyed | Amber, Amber with Animal Inclusion, Amber with Plant Inclusion, Blue Amber, Golden Amber, Green Amber, Opaque Amber, Patterned Amber, Red Amber | Must be disclosed. Dye may fade, bleed or dissolve in solvents (alcohol, acetone), and dyed material must not be labelled "natural colour"; dyed jadeite counts as B/C jade and must be conspicuously labelled; dyed agate and chalcedony are extremely common. |
| Coated | Amber, Amber with Animal Inclusion, Amber with Plant Inclusion, Blue Amber, Golden Amber, Green Amber, Opaque Amber, Patterned Amber, Red Amber | Must be disclosed. Coatings may be abraded, flake off or discolour, and coating is not a permanent enhancement; the coating material must be disclosed (e.g. Mystic Topaz is coated topaz), and the treated effect must not be implied to be natural. |
Care codes on member entries
Member entries cite these CIBJO special-care codes: special-care code a, special-care code b, special-care code i, special-care code j, special-care code m. General gem care gives the full wording of every code.
Where members are recorded
Some member entries record the localities where their materials are found; Recorded localities shows them on a sketch map and lists them by continent.
Names
- 简体中文
- 琥珀与天然树脂材料
- 繁體中文
- 琥珀與天然樹脂材料
- English
- Amber and natural resin materials
- 日本語
- 琥珀・天然樹脂材料
Authority source
- Authority source
- Review status
- Reviewed against CIBJO, GB/T and IMA boundaries.
Shared classification
All 10 members share these values:
- Origin class
- Natural materials
- Material domain
- Natural organic and biogenic materials
- Identity level
- Organic or biogenic material
- Mineral chemical class
- Not applicable
- Construction or treatment status
- Natural identity; treatment status unknown