Green Opal Polished Freeform Palmstone - 33g, 38mm
Regular price
£6.99
Sale
Locality - Madagascar
Size – 38 x 34 x 23mm
Weight – 33g
Size – 38 x 34 x 23mm
Weight – 33g
This rare green opal freeform features excellent, vibrant lime green colouration throughout with black, 'poppy seed' inclusions. It has been expertly shaped, polished and smoothed by a Madagascan lapidary artist and only has a very minor 'rough' area of chalky white material. Green opal is a scarce material and is only found in limited quantities.
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Opal is a gem consisting of amorphous silica and 3-13% water, found lining and filling cavities in igneous and sedimentary rocks where it has been deposited from circulating waters. It is not actually considered a true mineral due to it's lack of fixed chemical makeup or crystallince form, and so is instead classed as a 'mineraloid'. Opals are divided into three subgroups; precious opal, yellow-red fire opal and common opal. Precious opal is the most highly regarded, displaying a stunning play of colours on it's surface – known as 'opalescence' – produced by the refraction and reflection of light within it.
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Many experts believe that the name 'opal' derives from the Indian Sanskrit word 'upala' meaning 'stone' or 'precious stone', and the ancient Latin name for it was 'opalus', meaning 'see a colour change'. This gemstone has been treasured for centuries and is used extensively in jewellery to this day. The oldest opal artefacts ever found were uncovered in a cave in Kenya and date back to 4000BC, and they were likely of Ethiopian origin.