Locating the Material: Prussian Carved Ambers, Place Ambiguity and a New Geography of Central European Art.

This article examines the cultural and artistic significance of amber in early modern Prussia, focusing on its role as a prized material used by the Hohenzollerns and Vasas for diplomatic gifts and its complex material and symbolic properties explored by Prussian artisans. While Prussia, encompassing parts of present-day Poland and Russia, was the primary European source of amber until the late seventeenth century, the carved amber objects produced there—such as those by Königsberg master Jacob Heise—were designed with open-ended iconography and material qualities that allowed them to resonate across multiple geographic and cultural contexts in Europe. The article highlights how amber's physical attributes and associations with classical mythology, particularly Ovid's tale of the Heliades, enabled these artefacts to function as multivalent media that both publicized and obscured their Prussian origins, facilitating their appeal among elite collectors throughout Europe. Ultimately, the study challenges narrow nationalistic claims over amber, proposing instead that Prussian amber art exemplifies a transcultural artistic geography characterized by material ingenuity and cosmopolitan exchange.