Museo del Ámbar is located in a historic building that was originally the Convent of La Merced, from 1536 to 1546, and from 1624 to 1859. During the second half of the 19th century, the convent became a military barracks, and from 1963 to 1996 it was a municipal prison. In 1996 a board of trustees was created to restore it.
wikipedia.org
Museo del Ámbar has approximately 300 to 350 pieces. Among them are raw pieces that have been winners of different competitions, either for their quality or rarity. It also has pieces with entombed fossils, as well as items such as jewelry and objects of artisan value exhibiting the talent of nature and of Chiapas artisans.
wikipedia.org
“The importance of amber as a resin associated with the extinct tree, which lived millions of years ago, makes it itself evidence of that ancient life. Amber is a fossil resin. But amber is also a natural container that preserves organic inclusions of ancestral life, both from plants and animals and microorganisms.
Francisco Riquelme, UNAM Paleontologist
It is a time capsule, an airtight crystal, a burning ice, an absurd grave, a frozen container, a fossil tomb. The paleontological value of amber is invaluable.”