[Jewelry making - Article 00020] - Re: [Orchid] Repairing amber

[Pam Chott]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========


    I'm sorry that I don't know how to repair cracked amber but wonder if
    that is what you're looking at.  Natural amber with included insects
    is most commonly irregular lumps or masses which contain multiple
    insects and perhaps dust and plant material as well such that
    polished specimens are more likely to be smaller and irregularly
    shaped. The description of a clear, 30 mm disk with perfect placement
    and crack raised my suspicion that the piece is a fake.  Many fakes
    have been made and the potential market has increased greatly since
    Jurassic Park, etc. 


    Is the crack horizontal and in the same plane as the fly or vertical?
     If horizontal, it would seem to futher support the possibility of
    two layers of resin with a fly placed between pourings.  Perhaps the
    fly species would help the determination.  I'm not an expert by any
    means, but would not expect to see a "housefly" type in real amber,
    though I have seen them in some fakes. 


    You can try the tip of a hot needle on an inconspicuous place (the
    side or an edge of the piece) to check for the characteristic "piney"
    smell of amber.  If it is indeed authentic, I would suspect it is a
    very valuable piece and perhaps another on this list could assist you
    in its repair. 

Good luck to you. 

____________________________________________________________________
T h e   O r c h i d   L i s t
Open Electronic Forum for Jewelry Manufacturing Methods and Procedures
____________________________________________________________________
Orchid FAQ:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/faq.htm
Orchid Archives:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/archive
Orchid Galleries:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/gallery.htm
Invite a Friend:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm
____________________________________________________________________
Tips From The Jeweler's Bench - Article Archive
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm
The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography List
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/jewelry-books
Buy Orchid Jewelry:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/shop
____________________________________________________________________
-Unsubscribe:
-Email: orchid-request AT ganoksin.com Body=unsubscribe subject=blank
____________________________________________________________________