OPAL: Legend and truth about one of the most fascinating and rare stones
Gemstone quite charming and rare has always been considered of great value. |
Its name comes from the Latin language "opalus", itself derived from changes in the greek word "opallios" and from the Sanskrit "ùpalah". The Opal has the characteristic of splitting the light into its component colors. Instead, the Arab people believed that the gemstone was generated directly in the sky and that the iridescence was produced by lightning.
For a more detailed description of the gem, it is necessary to divide it into two types. The natural opals and opals that, albeit from a natural base, have undergone The intervention of man and are called "doublets" or "triplets". The natural opals: Opals blacks Boulder opals: Opal noble: Opal common: The natural opals, but characterized by manipulation Doublets: Triplets: A bit 'of history and legend: Astrology assigns the Opal to the those born under the constellation of Capricorn In the early decades of the 800, the merchants of Diamonds London, in order to protect their market, they spread the rumor that these gemstones would bring bad luck to those who wore, deliberately misrepresenting the story of Walter Scott "Anne of Geierstein" whose heroine wore opal that lost all its brightness at the same moment of his death. The action of the merchants had the desired success: the demand for this type of gemstones greatly diminished. However, the decrease in demand was not lasting, since the discovery of new deposits in Autralia the Opals returned to the fore. Australia is still the largest producer of this gemstone formed millions of years ago . |