The Mine, Part Four

The Fourth-out-of-Five parts in our Mines of the DR List. We would also like to point our readers to the blueamberchannel.com were new videos on Dominican Amber are available. If you're bored with Lost (as we all are) this may be an alternative ;-)

Name: Palo Alto

Meaning of Name: High Log

Location: La Cumbre-area. South-side of the Cordillera Septentrional mountain range. West-side of Carretera Turística. Mine has been closed.

Amount of Holes: N/A

Color Gradient: Amber, yellow, dark yellow.

Quality: N/A

Fossils: N/A

Notes: The mine has since been closed. Some of the largest specimens where found here and nearly all had inclusions. Many pieces are the primary study/exhibition objects in museums around the world. It is also the mine that has been dated due to its strata, setting the age-standard for Dominican Amber at 20-23 million years of age, somewhere at the “lower part Early Miocene, anywhere between the base of the Epoch and the top of the Globigerinita stainforthi Zone.” (Baroni Urbani & Saunders – 1980: 219)

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Name: Los Higos

Meaning of Name: The Figs

Location: La Cumbre-area. South-side of the Cordillera Septentrional mountain range. West-side of Carretera Turística.

Amount of Holes: One single-open pit.

Color Gradient: Mostly red, green and blue.

Quality: High quality. Good for drilling and polishing.

Fossils: Never.

Notes: Los Higos considered strongest amber. Make distinctive sound when struck together.

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Name: La Bucara

Meaning of Name: The Clay

Location: La Cumbre-area. South-side of the Cordillera Septentrional mountain range. West-side of Carretera Turística.

Amount of Holes: 5+ deep holes.

Color Gradient: Mostly red, green and blue , as well as amber, yellow in low grade.

Quality: High quality. Good for drilling and polishing.

Fossils: Sometimes.

Notes: Our newest video at blueamberchannel.com was shot entirely here.

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Citations: This compilation has been made with personal experience and using/completing the information from the following sources:

Baroni Urbani, C. & Saunders, J.B. (1980): The fauna of the Dominican Republic amber: the present status of knowledge. – Memorias, 9a geologica del Caribe, 1: 213-223; Santo Domingo. (Published 1983).

Schlee, D. (1980): Bernstein-Raritaeten (Farben, Strukturen, Fossilen, Handwerk). – 88 S. (mit 55 Farbtafeln); Staatl. Museum fuer Naturkunde) Stuttgart.

Schlee, D. (1984): Besonderheiten des Dominikanischen Bernsteins. – Stuttgarter Beitr. Naturk., C, 18: 63-71; Stuttgart.

Martínez, R. & Schlee, D. (1984): Die Dominikanischen Bernsteinminen der Nordkordillera, speziell auch aus der Sicht der Werkstaetten. – Stuttgarter Beitr. Naturk., C, 18: 79-84; Stuttgart.