December 15, 2024
Strolling around Santo Domingo’s Zona Colonial you’ll see lots of man-made relics from five centuries ago. But if you happen to enter the Amber World Museum, located about five minutes walk from one of them – the first Cathedral built in the Americas (early 1500s) – you’ll ‘discover’ some of Nature’s artifacts from 20 MILLION years ago. Yes, that’s millions of years ago, long before Columbus set foot here. In fact, it was long before Lucy, who’s said to be one of the first human beings (3 MILLION years ago) was even a twinkle in her Hominidae parents’ eyes.
What you’ll see in the Amber World Museum are samples of the dried tree sap we call amber. It was produced here in such amazing quality that connoisseurs of the material consider Dominican amber a distinct category unto itself among all ambers. One of the reasons it’s so special is the inclusion of insects and bits of plants from that prehistoric era. In some examples on display you can see insects easily recognized as ants. So perfect was their design that it hasn’t really changed much in millions of years. So these little insects, our ant-cestors so to speak, are our connection to life on Earth millions of years ago. If the five hundred year old buildings nearby didn’t make you feel relatively young, maybe these 20 MILLION year old ants trapped in amber will.
Here are some highlights of the exhibit.
(l-r) raw amber; Museum entrance, polished amber with ants.
Educational displays and an ant trapped in amber.
Museum courtyard; visitor; gift shop.
(l-r) a huge chunk of amber, timeline, amber jewelry.
Amber World Museum is located at Calle Arzobispo Meriño 452, Santo Domingo 10212, República Dominicana.
Hours are Monday-Saturday 9:00-18:00; Sunday 9:30-13:30. Tele 809-686-5700
