Artificial Amber from Shanhaiguan

Artificial Amber from Shanhaiguan

　　The artificial amber produced by the Shanhaiguan Arts and Crafts Factory in Qinhuangdao City, Hebei Province, is a type of exquisite travel souvenir. These transparent, intricately shaped pieces encase natural small creatures in lifelike scenes — such as a pair of tiny crabs munching contentedly on a sorghum spike, or a greedy praying mantis hunting insects. In 1981, with strong support and assistance from the Arts and Crafts Company of the Ministry of Light Industry and the Beijing Natural History Museum, the factory used synthetic resin as the raw material. Leveraging the local advantages of mountainous terrain, proximity to water, and abundant wildlife resources, it successfully created artificial amber that rivals natural amber in quality. It retains the crystalline transparency and color of natural amber while also holding modern scientific value. (Qinhuangdao)