Origin History Important Varieties Australia's Gift Men Mining Nature The versatile Opal

Origin

Many people are unaware that Opal, one of October's birthstones, is Australia's national gemstone. With the 2000 Olympic Games taking place in Sydney, this kaleidoscope gemstone may become more popular than ever. Australia not only mines 95 per cent of the world's precious black and white opal but offers opals of many varieties used in jewelry, including milky opal, jelly opal, boulder opal, crystal opal and some fire opal.

Opals of all varieties have been used for everything from easing childbirth to bringing strength in battle. Long known as the Wish Stone, opal is supposed to promote love and romance and to grant wishes and personal happiness.

There was a time, in nineteenth century Britain, when opal was considered bad luck for anyone not born in October. This was largely because of Sir Walter Scott, who portrayed opal as bringing bad luck and death to one of his fictional heroines, Anne of Girstein. However, Queen Victoria, who adored opals, helped to dispel this notion by giving opals to all of her daughters, whether born in October or not. Thus, opal gained a wider popularity than ever, especially when the brighter gem and black opals from Australia became available.

The most common and affordable variety of opal is called milky opal or white opal because it show a play of color against a white opaque background. Colors can show as patches or as tiny flashes called 'pinfire' and are usually light and bright pinks and greens.

Jelly opals and crystal opals are transparent to translucent, and the play of color is a subtle sheen of color dancing through the gem, rather than color patches.

The most valuable opals, known as black or gem opals, feature large, luminescent areas of one or more bright colors against a dark background.

Opals are rarely treated to enhance their color, however they can be quite delicate and should not be exposed to steam cleaning or excess acids. The best cleaning method is with a soft damp or dry cloth. Opal has a long history, dating back to the pre-Roman times, when one variety of milky opal with patches of pastel red, blue and green was mined in what is now Hungary. The more familiar black opal or gem opal, with brilliant flashes of red, blue, green and gold, was not discovered until the late 19th century in Australia. Today opals are also mined in Mexico, Brazil, United States and Canada.

People born in October have tourmaline as another option for their birthstone. Like opal, tourmaline comes in a wide range of colors and sizes, ranging from dainty to huge, at virtually every price level. Also like opal, tourmaline is said to bring high energy, good luck, creativity and romance, depending on its color.

October babies are not the only ones who can enjoy the versatility and variety of opal and tourmaline rainbows available. Both gems are lovely to wear and easy to acquire.

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History

In Twelfth Night Shakespeare referred to opal as "the queen of gems' " The Roman historian Pliny described it as having "the fire of the carbuncle, the brilliant purple of the amethyst and the sea green color of the emerald, all shining together in incredible union ' "

The Romans considered opal a symbol of hope, an appropriate attribute for a gem with a rainbow locked within it. The Arabs believed opals fell from heaven in flashes of lightning, thus acquiring their fiery colors.

These romantic notions are inspired by one of the most uniquely beautiful gemstones nature has ever produced-the dramatic, mysterious opal. The phenomenon displayed by opal is called play of color. It is caused by the diffraction of light set up by the layers of silica spheres in its composition. The effect is similar to the rainbow colors displayed on a soap bubble, only much more dramatic.

In the 19th century opal acquired a stigma through its role in the plot of a novel by Sir Walter Scott, Anne of Geierstein. The heroine owned an opal that burned fiery red when she was angry and turned ashen gray upon her death. Queen Victoria finally dispelled the curse by giving opal jewelry wedding presents to her relatives.

Opal has long been regarded as an October birthstone, sharing the spotlight with tourmaline. The famous French actress Sarah Bernhardt was born in October and never considered herself well-dressed unless she was wearing opals.

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Important Varieties

The most treasured variety of opal is black opal with strong play of color, that is, brilliant flashes of different colors. Black opal is so called because of its dark background color.

The variety known as white opal has a light background, and the colors displayed lean toward the pastel hues.

Crystal opal has a colorless background and exhibits play of color, but, unlike white or black opal, it lets light pass through it.

Fire opal is also fairly transparent, but its background color may be yellow, orange, red or brown. Sometimes it doesn't even have the typical play of color. It's often called Mexican opal because Mexico is a major source of this type. Fire opal with a red body color is also known as cherry-v opal.

Opal that is colorless, transparent to semitransparent and has little or no play of color is called jelly or water opal.

Opal quality is judged by the number of colors exhibited and the evenness of the pattern.

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Australia's Gift

Australia is the world's most important source of opal. The opal miner is a strange breed of individual. He chooses to lead a Spartan life in a particularly barren and dry-y corner of the world while he searches for his rainbows. To escape the extreme temperatures, he must burrow a home underground.

Opals are usually found in sandstone or claystone. Deposits are spread over a wide area, and there is little clue to their location. Mining is done on a small scale with hand-operated machinery and small tools. A pocket knife might be the final instrument to loosen an opal from its host rock.

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Men Mining Nature

Over the past century scientists have become highly skilled at creating laboratory facsimiles of fine gemstones. Far from being mere look-a-likes, these synthetic gems are made of exactly the same material that nature uses and mimic the natural structure perfectly.

Synthetic opal first came on the market in 1974 and has been improving ever since. A skilled geologist like a member of the American Gem Society can distinguish it from natural opal by viewing it under magnification, but to the untrained eye it looks natural.

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The Versatile Opal

Because opal displays a whole rainbow of colors, it can be worn with any color outfit. It is usually cut in a dome shape and set in rings, earrings, pendants, bracelets and pins. It may be joined by accents of ruby, sapphire or emerald to enhance particular color flashes in the gemstone. A fine opal piece is often guarded in a web of small diamonds as are other exceptional colored gems. Some opals are fashioned into beads for a major contribution to a woman's total look.

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