This is a truly lovely polished blue amber sphere from Sumatra, Indonesia. She weighs 7.1 oz and 2.75” in diameter and under normal light she looks tan and brown, arranged in interesting “islands” on a deeper born ocean. The blue color produced under ultraviolet light arises from her origins … she was formed from the sap of the Hymenaea protera tree, the same tree that contributes the color to Dominican amber. Under ultraviolet light, her amber color becomes kind of an ocean blue and in her, it is in fascinating patterns. The pink color is from reflection of the non-fluorescent tan areas. When you use the ultraviolet in person, you won’t see the pink. She is just lovely to have on a desk or nightstand.

Hand polishing amber is an act of love taking much time, patience and love. The outer, rough layers are taken off with rough sandpaper and then the amber is smoothed with increasingly less rough sandpaper until the amber glows and can receive a final gleaming polish.

Hymenaea protera is an extinct prehistoric leguminous tree, the probable ancestor of present-day Hymenaea species. Most neotropical ambers come from its fossilized resin, including the famous Dominican amber and now the Sumatran amber. This heritage is what gives the blue amber it’s famous blue color and lovely blue fluorescence. The Sumatran blue ambers are far bluer than the Dominican amber. The Dominican will show the blue fluorescence in sunlight whereas the Sumatran amber is deep blue to begin with in the raw material solely due to its thickness but shows a notable somewhat turquoise-blue when ultraviolet light hits it. The polished Sumatran amber is transparent and features the wondrous golden to red tones, but the same lovely blue color under ultraviolet light.

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Lovely Polished Blue Amber Sphere with “Island Zones”