Brewer's: Amber

This fossilised vegetable resin is, according to legend, a concretion of birds' tears. The birds were the sisters of Meleager, who never ceased weeping for the death of their brother. —Ovid: Metamorphoses, viii. line 270, etc.

Around thee shall glisten the loveliest amber That ever the sorrowing sea-bird hath wept.

T. Moore: Fire Worshippers.

“You may be disposed to preserve it in your amber.” Notes and Querries. —W.Dowe.

Pretty! in amber, to observe the forms Of hairs, or straws, or dirt, or grubs, or worms, The things, we know, are neither rich nor rare, But wonder how the devil they got there.

Pope: Ep. to Arbuthnot , 169–72.

Related Content Allusions Foreign Words and Phrases Latin and Greek Word Elements Names: Their Origins and Meanings Old Testament Names Mythology Ancient Greek Literature & Mythology The Bible (King James version) The Koran (translation by J. M. Rodwell) Shakespeare's Plays Tales from Shakespeare (Charles and Mary Lamb) Frequently Misspelled Words Frequently Mispronounced Words Easily Confused Words Writing & Language