Amber is processed by master hands and transformed into jewelry and ornaments

Discovered in 2018 in the village of Aydıncık in Bayburt, the amber unique to Bayburt, which is one-third as valuable as gold, is being processed in the workshop by trainees under the leadership of Jewelry Technology Department teacher Gökhan Polat and turned into accessories such as prayer beads, rings, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings.

Within the scope of the 'Local Production, On-Site Employment' project submitted by the Provincial Directorate of National Education to the Eastern Black Sea Regional Development Administration (DOKAP), an amber processing workshop was established within the Public Education Center Directorate. Applied training has begun in the workshop, which was established to utilize the amber stone—which is unique to Turkey—as a gift item and to train qualified human resources. Furthermore, the course aims to teach amber processing so that the amber stone can find a place as a sector in Bayburt and become widespread. In addition to its use as a gift item, the amber stone, which also has spiritual and medicinal uses, is intended to contribute to the Bayburt economy as an underground resource.
Stating that the work is being carried out meticulously and without interruption, Jewelry Technology Department teacher Gökhan Polat said, "The amber found in Aydıncık village was used as fuel for years. We are working with the trainees to turn this product into jewelry and accessories. We are working both to contribute to the Bayburt region and to contribute to the national economy."

“His hobby turned into his job”

Trainee Bayram İpek, who was interested in amber as a hobby for a long time, learned amber processing techniques at the course he attended and is now continuing professionally in the amber business, which he started with enthusiasm. Stating that he loves doing amber processing work to make Bayburt amber known to the whole world, İpek said, "I have been closely involved with Bayburt amber for about 4 years, and I have been working professionally for 2 years. In the amber workshop opened within the Public Education Center, we are working on different products such as necklaces, bracelets, and prayer beads made from Bayburt amber. The goal of our intensive work here is to make Bayburt amber known to Turkey and the whole world, and to make amber visible."

"We want to contribute to the national economy and make Bayburt amber known to the world"

Providing information about the workshop activities, Public Education Center Director Selçuk Çakmak stated that they will make a significant contribution to the national economy with the products produced in the workshop and said, "Within our institution, we have a jewelry workshop among our hobby courses aimed at providing professional skills for employment. This workshop is very important to us because amber, which is a value of Bayburt, is processed here. We are talking about a stone that is only extracted in Bayburt; we attach importance to the work done in the workshop in terms of the recognition of Bayburt amber both in Turkey and in the world. Amber is a more important stone than Erzurum's Oltu stone. Oltu stone is the fossil itself, as you know. Amber, on the other hand, is formed from the resin of the pine tree itself, and it is only found in Bayburt; in this respect, it is a very valuable piece. Amber needs to be promoted, and for that, it needs to be processed and turned into gift items and presented to people's appreciation. This is one of the reasons why we established this workshop. Our workshop was established last year with a budget of 350 million with the support of the DOKAP project. In our workshop, we aim to train our trainees who are passionate about this business and help them start their own businesses.
We also desire for Bayburt amber to be recognized in this sense; this is our priority."