Owyhee Blue Opal

Say opal, and most people think of flashes in every color of the rainbow. But according to Geology.com, most opal in the world is actually "common opal", with no play-of-color at all. Owyhee opal is that kind: no rainbow, but a pastel blue, light or dark, that needs no apology.

The name comes from the Owyhee region, on the border between Oregon and Idaho in the United States. According to Wikipedia, blue opal comes from there, as well as from Peru and Nevada. According to Crystal Vaults, the deposit was discovered in 2003, near the Owyhee springs, which the site says were sacred to Native Americans.

Opal is not exactly a crystal. According to GIA, it is silica with water, up to 20% water trapped inside. And that explains something interesting: according to Crystal Vaults, Owyhee opal is often translucent when it comes out of the ground, and only turns opaque as it starts to dry out in the air. A stone that changes its looks as soon as it leaves home. The stones in the photo show two faces: one pale blue with white bands, and the other mostly greyish brown, with a bluish white strip along its edge.

Opal in general has a long history of love and fear. According to GIA, the Romans thought it the most precious and powerful of all stones, because it holds the colors of all the others. According to Hebrew Wikipedia, a Roman senator named Nonius chose exile rather than sell his opal to Mark Antony, who wanted to give it to Cleopatra. Then, according to GIA, the 1829 novel "Anne of Geierstein" gave opal a reputation for bad luck. Thousands of years of reputation, undone by one novel.