Opal has long been regarded as the fifth precious gemstone. (The other four are diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and ruby). It has also been regarded as the most beautiful and exciting of all gemstones by many. Reasons for this is the mysterious change of colors as the stone is moved around and the brilliance of the different colors it contains.

How the name "Opal" came about

The word "opal" is an ideal starting point for this talk: Most mineralogical texts say that it derived from the sanskrit "upala" meaning a precious stone. A tamed rendition, actually.

Opal was introduced into Greece during the first century B.C. (The Greeks and Romans probably obtained their opal from Turkey or India). The Greeks called it "opallios" a word coined from two other words, the first of which gives us words such as opaque and optical, while the other gives us words like alias and alter. Thus "opal" literally means 'to see a change' (of color)

The Indonesian name for opal is "kalimaya", derived from the Sanskrit 'maya', an illusion, and the Javanese 'kali' which moans a river. The result is a "river of illusion". The Aztec term ton Mexican opal means "the hummingbird stone", for its change of colors was likened to the sheen found on the plumage of that bird.

What Opal is

Opal is a true precious stone which occurs in many varied forms. Opal is amorphous silica with a water content varying from one to twenty percent, depending on the porosity and degree of hydration. Precious opal usually contains from six to ten percent water (A more complete description will follow later).

Opal may be dull and valueless, in which case it is called common opal. Common opal occurs in abundance throughout the world. One form of common opal found in association with opal of value, is "potch". In color, potch may be white, gray, black, amber; it may be honey-colored, watery clear, or a mixture of these colors

About 95 percent of opal from the opal fields is potch. Only 5 percent is of any value. Of this 5 percent about 95 percent is mediocre grade, with only 5 percent of real value. It is this small percentage- 5 percent of 5 percent that constitutes the magnificent opal which we call "precious opal". (No wonder precious opal commands such a high dollar price). Any other opal showing a play of color, but which is not equal in grade (color in intensity and purity) to the tops, is "noble opal".

Opal types

Top grade solid opal is PRECIOUS OPAL. Other brightly colored opal is NOBLE OPAL.

The precious-opal classification refers only to rough opal from which SOLID stones can be cut, or to finished gems which are solid stones. Top-grade doublets or triplets are classified as noble opal, not precious opal, because their opal content is backed with other material.

Solid opal is opal, which is of natural occurrence and solid enough to be set as a gem. Any pieces which need reinforcing (as happens in a doublet) are not solid opal, nor are any pieces which have a non-opal backing, including boulder opal with a backing of ironstone. An opal backed with opal is considered a solid, not a doublet.

There are other forms which cannot be classified as solid (thus not precious opal). These include any materials which show small detracting patches in the face of the cut specimen and which are either non-opal or lacking color play. 

Where nearly all our precious and noble opals come from

Both precious and noble opals are mined in several areas in the world. A few of these areas are worth mentioning here.

Destroying some myths and complaints frequently heard about opals

1. Opals fracture easily. This is not the opal's fault. When it does occur it is usually because the opal is not cut properly or the mounting it is placed in is improperly manufactured. Opal is about the same hardness (5 to 6.5 on the hardness scale) an amethyst and jade yet you seldom hear of them fracturing. Chief reasons are due to the way they are cut (faceted) and the way they are mounted.

2. Opals are unlucky. In 1829 Sir Walter Scott published a novel, "Anne of Geierstein" in which he used an opal to reflect the changing fortunes of the heroine. Critics of his novel conjured up the idea that opal could have properties of evil influence due to some of the heroine's misfortunes. This not only cut the value of opal in half at the time but amazingly this myth started by book critics in 1829 still exists today.

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