Have you come by a stone someone says is amber, but it looks like a fake? More importantly, do you want to check if it is the real deal before buying, the way you would with a jewelry diamond? Following are some methods you could employ.
- Check how it smells. Any amber would smell of pine and resin. If the thing is polyester of plastic, it will smell something like a burning bag. Heat a needle and touch the heated tip through a borehole. Smell near this hole and if you get a pleasant resin odor, then you are holding a real amber.
- Cut a piece with a knife, and if it does not fracture, then it is either flint or glass and not amber.
- Put it in salt water; if it rises up, it is likely plastic. The density is what you need to figure out. pressed amber usually sinks right to the bottom without much delay.
