OPAL

OPAL Web Pages

Synthetic opals are opals that are created in a labratory. Most synthetic opals are difficult to identify from natural opals without laboratory tests.Precious opal shows a variable interplay of internal colors and even though it is a mineraloid, it does have an internal structure. At the micro scale precious opal is composed of silica spheres some 150 to 300mn diameter in a hexagonal or cubic close packed lattice. Synthetic opals there are a few clues, however that can help you suspect synthetic opals. First of all, synthetic opals have an incredible fire, or play of color to them. Second, most synthetic opals have a patern that is generally too regular to occour naturally. Sometimes they also have a globular pattern to them. When viewed from the side, most synthetic opals seem to have a play of color that occours in columns rather than the random play of color that occours naturally. Finally, synthetic opals are generally a little lighter than natural opals. It is important to note that none of these characteristics prove that an opal is synthetic; but, while they can ocour naturally, they normally don’t. Common Opal Besides the   gemstone varieties that show a play of color, there are other kinds of common opal such as the milk opal, milky bluish to greenish (which can sometimes be of gemstone quality. Australia produces around 95% of the world’s opal. 85% is called ‘light opal’ or white and crystal opal. White makes up 65% of the opal productions but cannot be found in all of the opal fields. Crystal opal or pure hydrated silica makes up 30% of the opal produced, 8% is black and only 2% is boulder opal.   Tucson is holding one of the largest gem shows in the world and many jewellers are looking to outsource rare black Opals from the capital of the industry lightning Ridge Australia.   Tucson is the place to go if you are looking for such rare gemstones,  some of the mining companies will be taking commercial grade Opal and gem quality Opal to display at their stalls, you will find all companies represented at the gem Expo from the largest diamond merchants to the smallest jeweller that has semiprecious gemstones and fossils.  Australian Opal is sometimes found on fossilised dinosaur bones along with Opal fossil shells, also fossilised seeds from the period of where the dinosaurs ruled the earth and sometimes even a complete fossilised dinosaur is found ,in most cases the Opal Miner’s and producers would only find a small fragment of fossil bone and you will find it all at the Tucson United States of America gem show, if you do not have time to travel to Tucson this year then you can contact grahamblackopal.com who has been mining lightning Ridge black Opal for over 30 years and have them delivered door-to-door within days from anywhere in the world safe secure transport.

 

Copy Rights 2009

~ by black opal on April 10, 2009.

Posted in Uncategorized

Leave a Reply