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Message:: [QUOTE="Joan, post: 2394288, member: 5398"]I stand corrected.  For what it's worth, here's a slightly different take on copal from the Manager at mindat.org ("world's largest open database of minerals, rocks, meteorites and the localities they come from.") -- he was commenting on the statement, The only essential difference between amber and copal is age"  "...Partly true, but I wouldn't like to see that made into the most important part of the definition; it's a bit like saying the only essential difference between grape juice and fine wine is age. The difference between "copal" and amber is in physical characteristics due to polymerization of the constituent molecules, which is what gives amber whatever minor hardness, toughness and chemical resistivity it has to enable it to be used as a gem. Amber is far more than just very old dried tree resin. "Copal", on the other hand, really is just old dried tree resin, it doesn't satisfy the minimum qualifications of a gem, and if someone ruined a piece of it while doing a solvent test, who cares?" quote from Alfredo Petro, Manager, mindat.org.  Others on the forum disagreed with his statement implying that no one would care if a piece of copal was ruined while doing a solvent test.[/QUOTE]