Around 95% of the Opal production all over the world is done in Australia, and the remaining 5% is done in Slovakia, South Africa, the US, Mexico, Brazil and the Czech Republic. Distinct varieties of Opals possess different characteristics, and their prices vary according to their attributes like shade, origin, visual effects and many more. Given below are some of the varieties of natural Opal gemstones on the basis of their characteristics.
White Opal
White Opals are known for their light-coloured or white background that comes with a radiant interplay of colors. These coveted gemstones are transparent to translucent in nature and exhibit a mix of blue, red, green and purple shades. Despite being called White Opals, these stones are sometimes gray or colorless or milky in appearance. White Opals of good quality are exceptional and are loved by gemstone enthusiasts. The mining of White Opals is mostly done in white cliffs and marla regions of Australia, whereas there are some other origins as well that produce low quantities of White Opals, such as Ethiopia, Canada and Hungary.
Black Opal
Black Opal is the most renowned variety of Opals that contains a dark background, due to which the interplay of colors is exhibited brilliantly. These stones are found in numerous origins, such as the US, Ethiopia, Honduras, Australia and lightning ridge, among which Black Opals from the lightning ridge are of the best quality. The value of these stones depends upon how well they exhibit the interplay of colors. Their name, Black Opal, doesn’t implicate that they are of black color, instead, it implies that they contain a dark background.
Boulder Opal
Boulder Opals contain natural Opals inside ironstone boulders. These kinds of Opals are formed when Opals inside boulder veins are faceted and furnished. Boulder Opals were first found in Queensland, Australia, but currently, they can also be found in Canada and Brazil. As the veins of these stones are extremely thin, cutters have to let the ironstone part remain untouched so as to attain full-sized Opals.
Matrix Opal
Matrix is an enhanced kind of Boulder Opal in which large rocks encircle a tiny Opal stone. These stones go through treatments and are only available in Australia. Also, they do not possess any kind of interplay of colors inside the stones.
Water Opal
Water Opals are colorless varieties of precious Opal gemstones that possess a silky texture. The interplay of colors in these stones is exhibited on a transparent surface, due to which they look minimal. Best-quality Water Opals are produced in Australia, the US and Mexico.
Fire Opal
Fire Opals are gemstones that are available in different hues, such as shiny orange, red and yellow shades. These stones exhibit either minimal or no interplay of colors and are transparent in nature. Fire Opals are only found in Mexico and Australia, and the Mexican ones are referred to as Mexican Fire Opals.
These stones form under erupting volcanoes when gaps in lava containing silica get filled with water. The water gets stuck inside the lava due to high temperature and pressure, making alluring radiant gemstones.
Blue Opal
Blue Opals are widely utilized gemstones that are found in Peru, the US and Indonesia. The color intensity of these stones varies from light to pale pastel blue colors. Blue Opals from Peru are also referred to as Peruvian Opals, and these stones are semi-opaque to opaque in transparency. These stones do not exhibit any interplay of colors. Also, Blue Opals that are opaque need to be cut in order to enclose the matrix. In the US, these stones are found in Idaho, Oregon and Nevada.
Cat’s eye Opal
Cat’s eye Opals are Opal stones that exhibit the cat’s eye effect on their outer surface. These rare Opals are widely popular for the chatoyancy effect they possess. They are also referred to as Opalite Cat’s Eye in the gemstone world.
Navratan, the online gem bazaar
Currently, the Opal gemstone market is filled with enhancements and synthetics, due to which it becomes harder for buyers to invest in natural Opal stones. This is why if you want to purchase a real Opal stone, you should only look for trusted gemstone dealers like Navratan that only deal in natural and untreated gemstones.
