The Opal

The Opal is an atypical gemstone which invites us on a journey into a dream-world full of fantastic stories. In casting our gaze at this gemstone, it can be appropriated, we imagine a world, a landscape, created by the sublime shades and colours of the stone. The fantastic transformation of the Opal is the reflection of the varying emotions and states of mind of people. Each Opal has its own humour, and unique vision. Opals are like human emotions : always different and constantly renewed.
Philippe Tournaire has a particular affection for this gemstone with character, which awakens our curiosity and charm through its enigmatic and rather unexpected beauty.
In many instances, when we think of "Opals", our first thought is for superstitions related to the gemstone, which are often pejorative. In reality, as we will see through the following explanations, the Opal is considered by many as a stone full of hope, love, purity for a great many people, and since the dawn of time.
Everything which nature is able to offer in terms of splendour seems to be united in the luxurious reflections of this high-quality Opal : fire, sparkles, all colours of the rainbow and the sweet brilliance of the South Seas. As the origin of a great many legends and superstitions, this surprising gemstone has had a somewhat changing reputation through the ages and throughout the many cultures.

Opals : technical information and handling advice

– Age of the Opal :

Scientists believe that the majority of Opal deposits were formed some 15 to 30 million years ago.

– Crystalline formula of Opal :

SiO2, nH2O. Opal is a hydrated Silicon Dioxide and has no crystalline structure.

– Hardness :

between 5.5 and 6.5 on the Mohs scale. For information, the Mohs scales was invented by the mineralogist named Mohs which is used to measure the hardness of a gemstone, notably its resistance to scratches and abrasion. Information : the Mohs scale goes from 1 to 10, with diamond having a hardness of 10, and talc a hardness of 1.
– Cleaning Opal :

Delicately rub the stone using a slightly dampened cloth.
– Precautions :

As all precious objects, Opal requires care and attention. Sudden changes in temperature can lead to Opal cracking, as it is composed of water. Take care with any sudden movement from hot to cold places, such as ultrasonic cleansing.

– Opal derivatives :

On the market there are synthetic opals, in addition to doublets and triplets, generally composed of a thin layer of opal, whether or not synthetic. A genuine opal can be distinguished from a fake due to the degree of uniformity of the reflections of colours. When looking at the gemstone from a side angle, a fake opal can be distinguished when abnormally uniform columns of colours can be identified. As such, if looked at from above, natural opal will reflect colours in the form of a comb, whilst fake opal with reflect colours in the form of a honeycomb like a beehive a little like a snake skin.

Opal, water and a fire of colours

This "enigmatic gemstone", as Philippe Tournaire likes to call it, is formed from variations in the sea level, as it is used to fill land cavities deposited such as silica gel. Opal is composed of between 3% and 30% water and should, therefore, be handled with care. It is a hydrated silicate which has the characteristic of unveiling its colourful reflections in the form of a rainbow : in the same way as a drop of oil on water. This makes it quite unique.
When a series of colours like this appears, people talk of noble or precious opal. This irisation, inherent to opal, originates from the absorption and diffusion of colours by microbeads of silicon which make up the opal. The more uniform the distribution of these beads, the more intense the colour range. Inversely, when these beads are distributed in a more uneven manner, there are no sparkling colours. This is when people talk about a common opal. This gives rise to the singular and rare nature of this gemstone with extraordinary reflections.
The range of colours apparent in opals is always very different, according to the colour of the stone and the way in which light is reflected by the stone. There are, therefore, several types of reflections, all known by various names such as "harlequin", "pheasant tail", "flash", "small points", etc.

The value of opals

Opals are judged on their beauty, which can be inherent to each stone, according to one’s tastes and feelings when viewing an opal.
On a more technical level, opals are judged on five distinct factors : the type of opal, the intensity of its range of colours, the transparency, the clarity and the size.

Different faces of the opal

Opals come in many shapes and are known by various different names.
The four largest varieties of opals are listed below :

- Black Opal

Black opals display a wide variety of beautifully intense colours, on a dark background. They originate from Lightning Ridge, New South Wales in Australia, which is the number one source of black opal in the world. They can also be found in Queensland - North Easter Australia - and in Southern Australia. This is one of the most coveted and rare opals in the world.

- Boulder Opal

Boulder opals are those which display a ribbon of sparkling colours, between layers of maroon which constitute the mother rock of the opal.
This mother rock may either be sandstone or composed of ironstone. The contrast between the mother stone and the veins of the opal reinforces the intensity of its colours.
The only location in the world where boulder opals are extracted is the County of Winton in Queensland.

- White Opal

White opals are entirely transparent. These are the most widely known by the general public and are easily located, compared with higher ranges of opals such as black opals, with very often a brighter reflection.
They can be found in Mintabie, Coober Pedy and Andamooka in Southern Australia, as well as White Cliffs in New South Wales.

- Fire Opal

Fire opals are bright orange and do not necessarily display a wide rainbow of colours. They may be faceted, whilst opals with rainbows of colours are often cut as cabochon or kept in their original shape to retain their full effect.
These are primarily found in Mexico, in the States of Queretaro and Sonora, and in Mexico.
Approximately 90% of Opals originate from Australia. Australia produces the majority of black, white and boulder opals.
Throughout time, opals have continued to fascinate cultures across the world. And each country has its own specific relationship with this enchanting gemstone. It is the journey of opals down the ages and across the continents which makes this oh so very out of the ordinary history.

Opals down the ages

The origins of the term Opal comes from the Sanskrit "Upala" meaning "precious stone". Later, the Greeks named this "Opallios" meaning "to see a change in colour".
Since the beginning of time, Opals have been honoured by western cultures, who called it the "Anchor of Hope".
In Ancient Greece, Opals were just as highly esteemed as diamonds. It was said they could foretell the future.
In Ancient Rome, they were named the "Queen of Gemstones" as they displayed the colours of all other gemstones. For the Ancient Romans, Opals constituted the symbol of hope, purity and love. They placed it second in rank following emeralds, in terms of value.
In the Middle Ages, Opals were used to heal illnesses related to eyes and later blonde females used to wear hair accessories with encrusted opals, believing these magic stones to possess qualities which would stop their wonderful blonde hair from turning grey. The crown of the Holy Emperor of Germanic Romans incorporated a breathtaking diamond, called "Orphanus". It was told that it held the honour of the Empire.
In the late 18th Century - early 19th Century, Opals were additionally part of the crown jewels in France and Hungary. Napoleon offered to the Empress Joséphine the "Fire of Troy", a magnificent opal with luminous red colours.
Opals in the treasure of Hofburg in Austria are also famous : amongst these is the collection of Princess Stéphanie of Belgium which includes belts, bracelets, earrings, pins and necklaces all with opals.
The collection of Queen Victoria is no less famous. As the Head of State of Australia, the homeland of the most remarkable black opals, the Queen had access to some of the most prestigious gemstones. She would wear these throughout her reign and offered them to friends and her daughters, and granddaughters, favouring the symbol of love and purity as conveyed by opals. She became exceedingly wealthy as the Royal Court of England was at the time considered as the leader in fashion across the entire globe.
Still in the 19th Century, although considered as a lucky charm by the Queen, opals took on a whole new reputation in France. Several theories exist to explain this phenomenon. The most plausible is as follows : stone cutters in the 19th Century were punished if they caused any damage to stones in their work. As this happened on several times when handling opals, they believed that this gemstone in particular was bad luck and synonymous with misfortune.
The popularity of the opal has, however, recovered, notably thanks to leading characters and figures such as Queen Victoria, and the famous French actress Sarah Bernhardt, who wore some sumptuous opals when playing Cleopatra in 1890.
Fortunately, also, a discovery in 1902 in New South Wales in Australia allowed the negative reputation of opals to be eclipsed. At Lightning Ridge, miners unearthed an entirely new form of precious opal : black opals. The opal trade then underwent a new, and entirely well-deserved boost.
Several years later, opals saw their golden age during the Art Deco period (from 1920 to 1939) : artists and designers preferred opals over other stones due to their discreet charm.
Since the dawn of time and still today, opals are enigmatic and are unlikely to go unnoticed.
For many, they inspire many virtues and are an entirely unique gemstone. Whether the stuff of legend or reality, each is free to believe at their own will.
Be this as it may, the various legends about opals and their virtues reinforce the fact that this enigmatic gemstone will always be present in the minds of admirers.

For 40 years, Philippe Tournaire has used Opals in his timeless creations which showcase this exceptional stone.
Philippe Tournaire offers workshops to discover and learn about opals during which sublime opals are presented and often lead to customised creations.
In this article, you will find several photographs of original creations by Tournaire, which will charm you to the enchantment of opals !
Dare to discover Tournaire, dare to discover the opal !