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The Scientific Romance with Amber

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 July 2017

David Grimaldi  and
Rob Desalle
David Grimaldi
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology, American Museum of Natural History New York, New York 10024-5192
Rob Desalle
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology, American Museum of Natural History New York, New York 10024-5192
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Extract

For at least 10 millenia, a special mystique has surrounded amber. This is probably due to the warmth of its color and touch, its lightness, and the small organisms that are sometimes found in it. Some of the oldest Mesolithic artifacts are amber carvings from Europe, and a rich folklore about origins of amber existed among the ancient Greeks, Assyrians, and Romans. The true origins of amber, as a fossilized resin that bled from trees, was first recognized by the Roman natural historian, Pliny the Elder. By the Renaissance Period, amber was used for elaborate figurines, carved bowls, jewelry, pipes, even caskets. The color of amber, especially in Mediterranean cultures, represented luxury.

Type
Bring 'em Back Alive
Information
The Paleontological Society Special Publications , Volume 7: Dino Fest , 1994 , pp. 295 - 308
Copyright
Copyright © 1994 Paleontological Society 

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References

SUGGESTED READINGS

Desalle, R., Gatesy, J., Wheeler, W., and Grimaldi, D. 1992. DNA sequences from a fossil termite in Oligo-Miocene amber and their phylogenetic implications. Science 257: 1933–1936. (our original, scientific report) Google Scholar
Desalle, R., Gatesy, J., Wheeler, W., and Grimaldi, D. 1993. Working with fossil DNA from amber. Discovery (Yale Peabody Museum) 24: 19–24 (the basics of the molecular techniques and analyzing DNA sequences).Google Scholar
Grimaldi, D., Bonwich, E., Delannoy, M., and Doberstein, S. 1994. Electron microscopic studies of mummified tissues in amber fossils. American Museum Novitates, in press (a comprehensive study of soft-tissue preservation in amber fossil insects and plants).Google Scholar
Langenheim, J.H. 1969. Amber: a botanical inquiry. Science 163: 1157–1169 (a classic, and still the definitive reference on deposits, ages, and botanical origins of ambers around the world).Google Scholar
Langenheim, J.H. 1990. Plant resins. American Scientist 78: 16–24 (a review of the chemistry of modern and fossil resins, and their biological implications).Google Scholar
Larsson, S.G. 1978. Baltic amber – a paleobiological study. Entomonograph vol. 1. Denmark: Klampenborg. 192 pp. (an engaging and detailed synthesis of all that has been learned about the paleontology of Baltic amber).Google Scholar