Opal

Opal is technically not a crystal as it does not have a defined crystal structure. The colour comes from the tiny Silica spheres that make up the crystal, and they have to be arranged in a certain way and be a certain size to create the colour flashes. There are two main categories of Opal, common and precious. Common opal comes in a variety of colours such as greens, pinks, blues and white but does not display any flash or 'fire'. Precious Opal is typically black or white and is graded on the colour flash displayed. The most desired precious Opal comes from Australia and can fetch thousands of dollars per carat, whilst other famous localities include Ethiopian Welo Opal, Oregon, Mexico and Virgin Valley. Arabian legends believe that Opals fell from the heavens in flashes of lightning, whereas the Greeks believed they were the tears of Zeus after he won a battle against the Titans. The Aborigines believed that Opals were in fact their creator god, the Rainbow Serpent, and the Indians believe Opal was their Goddess of Rainbows, who turned herself into the gem in order to escape the unwanted advances of the other gods.