In 1701, Prussian King Frederick I commissioned an ornate room made from tons of translucent Baltic amber. Later, the intricate panels passed into Russian hands, and Catherine the Great installed them in her summer home in Tsarskoye Selo (now Pushkin). They were looted during the German invasion of Russia in World War II, but disappeared in the aftermath of the war. Their location remains one of the art world's greatest mysteries. This captivating treasure engages the imagination, and you can carry a connection to this intriguing tale with you as a lightweight amber locket. Accented with sterling silver and carved by hand in Poland.

1 1/4"-wide pendant hangs from an 18" sterling silver chain.

Mined in Sicily, Burma, Romania, Poland, and Mexico, amber is actually the fossilized resin of ancient trees, and is among the oldest stones used for human adornment. It has been called the gold of the sea because the most extensive deposits are found along Baltic shores. The Greeks, to whom amber represented the tears Apollo shed as he was banished from Olympus, called amber "electron" because of its tendency to attract lightweight objects when rubbed.