Baltic Amber.
It is the fossilized resin from prehistoric forests of colossal Kauri pine trees. The Polish Museum of Science confirms that the reddish-hued amber comes from extinct deciduous trees such as cherry and plum. This resin was once so abundant that it could be found on the shoreline alongside other debris tossed out of the sea by the tide?s ebb and flow. Now this depleted resource must be mined from the depths of the Baltic Sea, increasing its value and rarity.
People are often fascinated by the ill-fated mosquito or other insects found enshrined in the luminous resin. Such unique pieces are rare and thus more expensive.
Copal, also a hardened tree resin, is a much younger cousin to amber, and is often mistaken for it. Less than 30-million-years-old, Copal does not possess the tremendous healing power of the 40-to 140-million-year-old Baltic amber.