Amber Listserv / amber bowl

[Andrea Paysinger]

One of the amateur amber carvers that I used to see many years ago,  
at the gem and mineral shows here in So. Calif., made bowls of  
amber.  They were quite small but very pretty.
He was one of the people who sparked my interest in amber.  Up to  
then I mostly did carving in quartz, opal, topaz, ruby, beryl, jet,  
jasper, etc.

To save as much material as possible, he would cut a chunk of amber  
into slabs - as I recall about 1/2 inch thick, possibly less,
then cut the slabs into graduated discs and cut the centers out of  
the discs, leaving a flat "ring" about 3/4 inch wide.

He then stacked the resulting "rings" onto the smallest disc (which  
remained solid) and glued them together using a melted resin he  
ordered from Australia that has similar properties to amber.

He would place this in a press and leave it for an extended period -  
I can't recall after all this time - he bought an antique book press  
from me, which is how I know about the process.  (He wasn't happy  
with the results with a woodworking press)

After the resin "glue" had set completely - probably several weeks -  
he would sand down and polish the ridges on the inside and outside of  
the bowl.
He carved designs on some of the bowls but others, sometimes cut from  
different types and colors of amber, he left plain.

He was simply known as "Mac" and if I ever knew his surname, I have  
forgotten it.  He was in his early '70s back then and that was at  
least twenty-five years ago.

Anyway, perhaps this will give someone an idea of how to produce a  
bowl without much waste.

We had talked at a few shows, where I was doing demonstrations of  
engraving and carving gemstones, and when he learned I also did hobby  
bookbinding, he asked me about a book press.  I had several (another  
of my collections) including one that was a duplicate as I had bought  
another in better condition.  That is when he explained what he was  
doing and why he wanted the press.  He lived near San Diego (I think  
in Lemon Grove) and we made arrangements to meet near the freeway  
when I was on my way to a dog show down that way.

I do wish I could remember the details about the resin he used - I  
know it came from a tree native to Australia but other than that my  
memory is blank.  I know he did not like the results when he tried  
Krazy glue because it caused crazing on the surface of the amber and  
other glues were not transparent enough.


Andie