Madagascan Green Opal Standing Display Freeform - 86mm, 150g
Regular price
£13.99
Sale
Locality - Madagascar
Size – 86 x 45 x 34mm
Weight – 150g
Size – 86 x 45 x 34mm
Weight – 150g
This green opal standing freeform boasts vivid lime green colour throughout with citrus orange hints. It has been artistically shaped to a unique, curved top-heavy form and polished to a high lustre, ideal as a natural dislay piece. Due its top-heavy form and overall shape, this stone should be placed on a sturdy, flat surface where it will not be knocked or disturbed. Green opal is very scarce and only found in limited quantities in Madagascar.
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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.