As far as we can tell, the first type of opal found on this great continent was boulder opal, in the state of Queensland in the northeastern part of the country.
To keep this article from getting too long, we'll try to focus on this particular unique opal as it applies to necklaces and save the white opal, crystal opal, and black opal discussion for another time.
As the name suggests, Boulder Opal is often found in very large and also quite small boulders depending on the field. When an opal jewelry miner removes these stones from the ground, he carefully cuts away the rock, looking for thin veins of color scattered throughout the parent ironstone.
Using large diamond saws, the rare opal is gradually released from the matrix and as the diamond cutters expose the veins of color, all kinds of amazing colors and patterns are revealed. Forms of nature often appear before your eyes.
They are often described as a "picture stone" opal in that the patterns that occur when the opal veins are opened often present themselves in interesting images. Some of them are in the form of recognizable objects, such as clouds, trees, animals, sea creatures. Other times the paintings are like an abstract oil painting.
Because as much of this color as possible must be preserved, Boulder opal is often cut free-form rather than into any specific shape such as an oval, rectangle or square
So an opal price necklace decorating your outfit will draw attention to something that was not known in the past. And as your body moves, you'll see the "color change" that opal is known for because it reflects some or all of the colors of the natural rainbow. The science behind it is remarkable. In future articles, we will look in more detail at how light from the sun splits into different colors as it hits tiny spheres on the surface of this natural phenomenon.
No comments:
Post a Comment