AMBER (SIMETITE— BURMITE) 555 



SILICIAN AMBER. (SIMETITE.) 



Sicilian amber differs somewhat conspicuously from Baltic amber in appearance. It is 

 usually' transpar-ent, and, as a rule, darker in colom- than the latter. Reddish-yellow shading 

 off" to clear wine-red is not uncommonly seen, clear and dark brown, yellowish- white, and 

 garnet-red colours also occur, ^^hile some specimens are of such a deep red colour that in 

 reflected light they appear black. Among the more abundant transparent specimens are 

 some which are only translucent or opaque. A blue or green fluorescence is a striking 

 feature of this amber, and one which is frequently present. Another characteristic feature 

 is the presence of a thin crust of yellowish-red or dark-red to black weathered material, 

 which passes gradually into the fresh and unaltered paler coloured material in the 

 interior. 



Sicilian amber has the same hardness, the same fracture, and nearly the same specific 

 gravity as Baltic anibei-, and like this ac(juires, on being rubbed, an electrical charge. 

 When heated it fuses without previously swelling up, and gives oft' dense white fumes, 

 which contain no succinic acid and do not, therefore, irritate the respiratory passages. 



Among other places, Sicilian amber occurs in rounded pebbles in the neighbourhood of 

 the mouth of the river Simeto, south of Catania, having been washed out of Tertiary strata, 

 in which it was originally embedded, by that river, hence the name simetite. The material, 

 together with Baltic amber, is manufactured into ornamental articles at the town of Catania. 

 With Sicilian amber are sometimes found pieces of a black resin with a brilliant fracture, 

 which is less hard than the transparent simetite ; when heated it gives oft" a different smell, 

 and is probably an entirely different substance. 



BURMESE AMBER. (BURMITE.) 



In Burma, also, is found an ambei'-like resin which is worked for ornamental purposes. 

 The colouring is fairly uniform, and is sometimes of a clear, pale yellow, the colour of light 

 sherry. In darker specimens this colour passes into a reddish shade, and this, in its turn, 

 into a dirty brown colour ; this is the most usual tint, and material of this colour has the 

 appearance of colophony or solid petroleum. A few pieces are clear and almost colourless, 

 or of a pale straw-yellow, but the majority are somewhat turbid, and exhibit a marked bluish 

 or greenish fluorescence, which greatly diminishes their \cilue. 



Burmite is slightly harder than succinite ; it is brittle but easy to ^\■ork, and is often 

 peneti'ated by cracks which are filled ^\"ith calcite. It is difficult to obtain large pieces fi'ee 

 from cracks, and this again makes the material less valuable. 



The district in which Burmese amber is found is in the north of the country (see Maps, 

 Figs. 54 and 55). The long-famous mines are situated not far distant from the jadeite 

 mines, in a hill three miles south-west of Maingkwan in the basin of the Hukong, the upper 

 course of the Chindwin river, in latitude 26' 15' N. and longitude 96° 30' E. of Greenwich. 

 The pieces are distributed sporadically throughout a bluish-grey clay belonging to the Lower 

 Miocene di\ision of the Tertiary formation. They are smooth and flat, and the largest are 

 of the size of a man's head. The material is highly esteemed both by the inhabitants and 

 by the Chinese, and is worked to represent animals and idols and also for ear ornaments. 

 The yield was always scanty, and, on this ground alone, it seems scarcely probable that 

 Burmese amber should reach the European markets. On the other hand, a large quantity 

 of Baltic amber is exported through India to Burma, where it is sold as Indian amber more 



