Kömp's Fossils and Minerals

Is Your Amber Real? How To Identify Faux Amber From Real Amber      Before we can talk about identifying  real and fake amber,  we have to  know what amber is in the first place. Amber is fossilized tree resin, which became a fossil after millions of years. Amber can come in  different colors and shades, and some even have some inclusions.  My piece of amber with insect inclusions Inclusions in amber are usually referred to as different animals and insects inside the piece. If you look at the attached photo, you can make out some dark spots. Those dark spots are different small insects such as mosquitos and spiders that were  trapped in the amber, and stayed preserved inside. People have found pieces of amber with animals ranging from snakes to frogs. Those pieces are extremely expensive. If you were to spend a ton on a piece of amber with an animal inclusion, you'd want it to be real, right? Identifying Real Amber From Faux Amber  ...

  Mystery Mineral           Years ago, my family and I went to a local fossil and mineral store.  I frequent this store every month and buy a couple minerals and fossils each time, as they have new items every time I go.  This store has many different attractions.  One of which was a "Gold Dig", where you panned for small pieces of Pyrite, and another which was a "mine your own minerals" activity where you sift through sand/gravel to find different minerals such as Quartz, Calcite, Fluorites, Agates, and an assortment of different tumbled stones.  I've held onto these minerals for a couple years, and a few months back I decided to look at the mineral dust that collected at the bottom of the plastic bucket under a microscope.       One peculiar mineral I discovered at the bottom was this.   Sorry for the low quality, this photo was taken on my phone through my microscope.  Since I  took the pho...