Bug's tail preserved in amber maybe exhumed after excavation's stood down (8)
I believe the answer is:
resigned
'amber maybe exhumed after excavation's stood down' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.
'bug's tail preserved in' is the wordplay.
'tail' indicates one should take the final letters.
'preserved' becomes 'resined' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
The final letter of 'bug' is 'g'.
'g' going within 'resined' is 'RESIGNED'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for resigned that I've seen before include "Quit" , "Left work" , "Gave up one's job" , "quietly submissive" , "Defeatist" .)