Copal

Hardened tree resin that is younger than amber and not fully fossilized. It's often sold as amber.

Copal specimen — Photo: Didier Descouens, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to identify copal

Pale yellow, very light and soft.
Gets sticky with a drop of acetone (amber doesn't).
Often crazed with fine surface cracks.

Often confused with

Amber
Amber resists acetone and is older and harder.
Compare side by side

Where it's found

Colombia
Madagascar
Tanzania

Uses

Incense and varnish; sold as 'young amber'.

Rock tumbling

Not suitable for tumbling.

Did you know?

Copal is still burned as incense in Mexico and Central America.

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