Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v2.c47.10

v2.c47.10

*Amazon Stone* : see Feldspar **Amber** : This is a fossil resin consisting of oxygenated hydrocarbons. C:H:O ratio is approximately 10 : 16 : 1. Part of it yields succinic acid. Colour yellow, sometimes reddish, brownish or whitish. Sometimes fluorescent and luster resinous. Melts at 250-300°C. Of vegetable origin, altered by fossilization, found on the shores cast up by the waves after a heavy storm. Amber was early known to the ancients as *electrum* (electrical susceptibility) whence the word electricity was derived. The word *electrum* was used for gold-silver alloy also.