On wearing a soft stone
Amber is softer than a copper coin. It can be scratched by sand, by a fingernail under enough pressure, and reliably by every other stone in a jewellery box. This is not a defect to manage around — it is…
amberateliervlad
Reading an inclusion
Collectors do not grade inclusions by size. They grade by how much of the animal survived, how clearly it can be seen, and how honestly the piece has been prepared. Completeness A whole insect with legs and antennae intact is…
Copal is not amber, and the difference is in your hand
Most amber sold badly is not plastic. It is copal — tree resin that began the same process and never finished it. It looks convincing in a photograph and behaves quite differently in the hand. State, not age The usual…