These sunset-colored chunks hold a snapshot of ancient history in their core — or small critters caught up in the gloopy avalanche. In 2016, a small piece of amber that had been found in northern ...

Amber – tree sap left over from prehistoric forests, often with trapped insects or plant matter inside – was plentiful in the Baltic but highly prized for decorative purposes further south ...

The salamander managed to escape but then must have fallen into a pool of tree resin, which preserved the tiny amphibian as it hardened into amber. George Poinar, Jr., a biologist at Oregon State ...