Opal jewelry or jewellery as the British spell it, such as rings, pendants,opal necklaces make ideal fashion accessories for any occasion. Opals are found around the inland areas of Australia. Opals are a part of the cultural history of these regions. Many of the old opal mines are not producing anymore. Fields such as White Cliffs and Andamooka still have some coming out of the ground but not extensive. In recent times Lightning Ridge has also not produced like it used to. We are all waiting for a new field to be found.
Gold is the most common medium used to set opals in most parts of the world. There is a lot of experimentation with different metals and opals set in silver with rhodium coating (to prevent tarnishing) are gaining popularity by the day. The high price of gold is stimulating this trend because silver is much more economical.
Please note that the spelling of the word 'jewelry' varies between the USA and the UK, where it is spelt 'jewellery.' There is a lot of interesting information about the history of opals and ancient jewelry at this site. Please take a look at the blogs section to see what has been written, ask any questions and make some comments if you feel inclined.
Other articles in the Opal mine series have focused on how to tell if the opal itself is genuine so in this article we will take a look at the metal itself. Keep in mind that a Karat is a measure of the purity of gold. 24karat is pure gold. So each karat is one 24th. So 18 karat means the metal is 18 parts pure gold and 6 parts copper. You can work out the same percentages when referring to 9, 10, 12 or 14 karat gold.
You will need an eye glass to examine the small stamp usually on the inside of the shank of an opal ring, or somewhere else in the case of pendants, bracelets, and earrings.
· If the metal is stamped '925' it means that its sterling silver
· If its stamped 325 it means 9k gold, either white or yellow
· If the stamp is 585 it means 14k gold either white or yellow
· If the stamp is 750 it means 18k gold either white or yellow
Here are the full details of Gold and silver standards in carats and percentages of 1000
· 24 carat (999)
· 22 carat (916)
· 20 carat (833)
· 18 carat (750)
· 16 carat (625)
· 14 carat (585)
· 10 carat (417)
· 9 carat (375)
Opal Rings
Historically and in the fashion world, rings are by far the most popular form of jewelry and there is no exception to this in the opal industry. Design tastes vary from one person to the other and from one country to another. Some folks like intricate designs that feature the metal with the stone, and some prefer a very plain presentation that makes the opal stone itself stand out.
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