I am participating in Jenny Matlock's Alphabe Thursday
I was born October 3, 1944 in Columbus, Georgia. That makes me a Libra and my birthstone is the opal, one of the world's loveliest gemstones. I wish I could say I had an entire collection of opals but, in reality, I possess one opal ring with a few Infinitesimal diamonds and a lovely crown pendant set in opals ( not very fiery ), again with a smattering of infiitesimal diamonds. I have seen some incredible pieces of opal jewelry, during a visit to Australia in January of 1994 when I did a wonderful twelve day cruise from Sydney to Auckland, New Zealand. Australia produces over 90% of the world's opals ( it is their national gemstone ) although some come from Virgin Valley in northern Nevada, Spencer, Idaho, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Ethiopia. According to NASA reports, opal deposits have even been found on Mars!
Photo by Opals on Black.com
This semi-black doublet came from the Grawin Fields of
Lightning Ridge, Australia
An opal is a rather complicated gem and there is much to know when buying one. The internet has several good web sites with information on opals.
Check out wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opal,
the GB Jewelers website at: http://www.gbjewelers.com/education/opals/opal-information.html,
http://www.australianopals.com/
Photo by Opals on Black.com
Opals on black doublet
Opals are composed of the noncrystalline form of the mineral silica and water, ranging from about three to ten percent but sometimes up to twenty percent. They come in a range of colors. The rarest and most valuable are red and black opals.
An opal is able to reflect and refract specific wavelengths of light which is what makes this stone so special.
They do require special care. Since it is considered a "living" stone, it must not be worn when doing dishes, gardening, worn in a sauna or hot tub. Heat is not good for opals. Do not use an ultrasonic cleaner on them. Clean only with water or facial soap and a nonabrasive pad or cloth. Don't store them in oil. However, DO wear them.
Many superstitions have been linked to opals. Some consider them unlucky stones and its owners have met with disaster and death. Others say these curses have befallen only those not born in the month of October. So, if any of you have opals you want to discard, I'll be happy to send you my address.
As for my dream of buying an opal in Australia, what happened to that? What with having to purchase my flight to Sydney and home from Auckland, pay for the twelve day cruise, purchase two nights hotel in Sydney and Auckland ( and eat - heavens knows, I had fabulous meals at the beginning and end of my trip - plus exquisite wines in that part of the world ), my opal budget was down to $150 US. I had a huge array of opals from which to choose - literally thousands of the world's most incredible stones but I found nothing in Sydney or Melbourne in my price range. Sadly, at the last store in which I shopped in Hobart, Tasmania, I had given up. It was time to get back to the ship. I explained my situation to the shopkeeper who smiled and pulled out a small - but lovely - ring, set with three opals. "You can have this for $150 U. S. Joy of joys, on my finger it went, to the ship I went and I wore that opal for years. The center stone finally fell out and, though I had it reset twice, it just wouldn't stay in place.
I guess I should have gotten back to Australia before my job ended.
Photo by Opals on Black.com
Opal on black doublet
They do require special care. Since it is considered a "living" stone, it must not be worn when doing dishes, gardening, worn in a sauna or hot tub. Heat is not good for opals. Do not use an ultrasonic cleaner on them. Clean only with water or facial soap and a nonabrasive pad or cloth. Don't store them in oil. However, DO wear them.
Many superstitions have been linked to opals. Some consider them unlucky stones and its owners have met with disaster and death. Others say these curses have befallen only those not born in the month of October. So, if any of you have opals you want to discard, I'll be happy to send you my address.
As for my dream of buying an opal in Australia, what happened to that? What with having to purchase my flight to Sydney and home from Auckland, pay for the twelve day cruise, purchase two nights hotel in Sydney and Auckland ( and eat - heavens knows, I had fabulous meals at the beginning and end of my trip - plus exquisite wines in that part of the world ), my opal budget was down to $150 US. I had a huge array of opals from which to choose - literally thousands of the world's most incredible stones but I found nothing in Sydney or Melbourne in my price range. Sadly, at the last store in which I shopped in Hobart, Tasmania, I had given up. It was time to get back to the ship. I explained my situation to the shopkeeper who smiled and pulled out a small - but lovely - ring, set with three opals. "You can have this for $150 U. S. Joy of joys, on my finger it went, to the ship I went and I wore that opal for years. The center stone finally fell out and, though I had it reset twice, it just wouldn't stay in place.
I guess I should have gotten back to Australia before my job ended.
