Amber Room | Hacker News Reader

Amber Room

en.wikipedia.org

54 pointsdavedx21 comments

What an amazing construction. It reminds me of a story from the metallurgist who visited the Breakers, the elaborate mansion complex of the Vanderbilt family, and on a tour was shown the Morning Room. The guide said the brilliant silver-white walls were silver plate. “How do you keep it from tarnishing?” He asked. The guide didn’t know, so the scientist asked for permission to test it.

Stories vary on whether he tested it or someone stopped him before taking a sample, but all agree on the technology used: that’s not silver. They coated an entire room with platinum.

I know it's supposed to be beautiful but to me it just looks like a gaudy mess. An assault on my eyes.

It is most likely something you need to experience in real life in order to appreciate the beauty.

The smell alone must be amazing.

It might also have a different atmosphere on a dark evening lit only by candlelight, compared to "lit as brightly as possible for photography".

Amber doesn't smell at all. "Amber" scent in perfumery is more like a vibe thing.

It's the maximalist aesthetic. You probably prefer minimalism.

Does anyone know a monarch that eschewed the opulent trappings of his/her ancestors in favor of minimalism?

Sort of a special case, but the (current) Dalai Lama?

Siddhartha Gautama

technically a monarch: Pope Francis, famously kept his silver cross and made a big contrast with the more grandiose style of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI.

Atilla the Hun.

See: https://faculty.georgetown.edu/jod/texts/priscus.html?utm_so...

Wouldn't really be to my taste either but this whole story just reminded me of how much more interestingly the wealthy used to spend their money.

What legacies of high craftsmanship will be left by Musk and Bezos and their ilk? The rich seem to have collectively decided to no longer value good taste.

And I believe this has downstream effects on the aesthetics of everyday things for the average person too. It seems the average person will never again enjoy public works projects that are aesthetically beautiful, like say the Brooklyn Bridge or New York Public Library. All the craftsmen required to build such things no longer exist because the wealthy do not employ them.

I mean Musk is a somewhat bad example as the rocket engines SpaceX developed are high craftsmanship to the point their competitors said the engines were impossible.

name checks out

I'm not sure I know anyone who would choose to decorate their home this way; I think that level of opulence is very much "of its time". Currently minimalism and "quiet luxury" are more in vogue.

But IMO it is still possible to admire it as a passer-by. If nothing else it is a fascinating piece of history.

I find it extraordinary that it took only 10 years for early 18th century craftsmen to make it, but it required 24 years to reconstruct despite having access to late 20th century tools and technology.

What late 20th century tools and technology were used to reconstruct it that weren’t available during its construction?

I don't know any details. But off the top of my head, I can think of:

- photography and modern printing, making it vastly easier to distribute high-quality copies of reference images to craftsmen

- electric lights, allowing work to be done at any time of day and year (extremely important factor in Northern Europe!)

- thermostats, allowing optimal heat/humidity for amber work at any time of year

- electric-driven tools (drills, saws, polishing equipment, etc.)

- better and faster-drying adhesives and paint

- personal protective equipment (e.g. masks and goggles), allowing craftsmen to work longer continuous hours without risking their health

- higher-quality and more ergonomic measuring instruments

- better and vastly more ergonomic optical equipment (jeweler loupes, microscopes, etc.)

... and there's probably lots more

Lots of nice guesses that don't make a lot of sense after a more careful analysis.

> - photography and modern printing, making it vastly easier to distribute high-quality copies of reference images to craftsmen

Likely less than 0.1% of actual work to be done

> - thermostats, allowing optimal heat/humidity for amber work at any time of year

If this wasn't necessary during the original construction, why would it speed up reconstruction?

> - electric-driven tools (drills, saws, polishing equipment, etc.)

Given how fine the details are, it's unlikely that anything but manual labor and hand tools were used.

> - better and faster-drying adhesives and paint

One of the features of the room is that it's made from materials that don't require paint, e.g. it is natural amber and gold plating (or solid gold?). Not sure about adhesives, you may have a point there.

> - personal protective equipment (e.g. masks and goggles), allowing craftsmen to work longer continuous hours without risking their health

There's nothing much hazardous about gold or amber.

> - better and vastly more ergonomic optical equipment (jeweler loupes, microscopes, etc.)

The details are fine, but not that fine. We're not making the smallest wrist-watch in the world here. This is evident from wiki pictures.

I suppose the original craftsmen could do whatever came easily given their tools, abilities, and constraints, whereas the reconstructors had to replicate whatever the original craftsmen did even when it did not come easily to them.

>but divers subsequently discovered that the crates on the ship contained military equipment and personal belongings

Riiiiiiighhhht ...

The reconstruction of 8 wonder of the World is splendid

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