From Sorting to Finishing: The Process of Amber Processing

In order to obtain the result of amber products, as you can see on the ukrburshtyn.com website, and to achieve the desired result, amber processing requires a number of special preparatory operations. First, amber must be cleaned and sorted, as it is relatively inconspicuous as a natural stone and is covered with an oxidized brown crust. After careful sorting, the gemstone is sent to a workshop for mass production, where the surface crust is removed, polished and machined to create a new material. The blanks for the future products are rough pieces of amber that are mounted on abrasive machines to achieve the desired shape. This procedure is called rough grinding.

The main types of amber processing are processing, forming, leveling, grinding, polishing. Roughing involves the removal of crusts and plaque formed as a result of weathering, with the help of coarse-grained leather and nail files. Always use the transparent side of the stone, facing the sun, to start cleaning. The lower bark part becomes a wonderful background for future amber products.

Forming involves the production of pre-planned forms using the same tools and devices, with the fixing of a stone of a certain size, silhouette and spatial pattern. Alignment is required after sanding and shaping the product, which usually has a relatively rough and rough appearance with visible scratches. Medium grain leather smoothes the entire surface with light, circular and rotational movements of the leather or stone without pressure.

Grinding is a similar technique to leveling, except that it uses a finer grain. This technique is performed several times, gradually reducing the degree of graininess. The leather is waterproof and the working lead is wetted by stone or leather. The final operation is polishing, which gives the amber product a perfect "product" shock. The polished, glossy surface of amber reflects all objects like a mirror. The gem after processing is placed in a specially designated place, and then strung on a thread, inserted into a frame, attached to a chain or glued to a base, etc.

Another way to process amber is pressing, which involves heating an amber ingot until it becomes very flexible. The primary crust is removed, and the resin is extracted from the drum, in which the stones are rotated by a grinding wheel at the bottom of the machine. Then the amber is crushed into a fine powder and placed in molds. At a temperature of 180-220 degrees, the powder becomes a viscous mass, which is formed and allowed to harden and cool. This type of amber is used in the jewelry industry to make medical products and as an insulator. In addition, there is a chemical treatment of amber, when the remains of large stones are heated in containers at a temperature of 350-370 degrees. As a result of chemical reactions, amber decomposes into amber oil (15% of the total mass), succinic acid (1.2%) and "melted amber" (65%).

It should be noted that much of the amber is relatively high in value, suitable for the manufacture of jewelry and fine amber, of which 90% of the production goes to pressing and chemical processing. The largest specimens are used to make rare gifts, while the smaller pieces are used to create works of art. Medium-sized stones are used to create pendants, earrings, pendants, brooches, rings and other types of jewelry. Sometimes you can find insects, pieces of plants, air bubbles inside the amber. Such stones are considered an exceptional natural feature of amber and are highly valued. Depending on the nature of the properties and characteristics of the stone, different methods of processing amber are used.