This was discovered in the 1960s when Australian scientists examined opals under magnification of over 30,000X.įrom a technical perspective, play-of-color is caused by light moving through the alignment of silica spheres which is unique to each stone, making the appearance of each opal entirely one-of-a-kind. Rather, they are comprised of millions of tiny orbs of silicon that are stacked upon each other. Opals are different than most gemstones in that they are not made up of a regularly ordered crystal lattice.
Despite this long-term fascination, scientists only recently came to understand the internal structure of opals and what causes their unique play-of-color effect. Back in the first century C.E., Pliny the Elder wrote in his famous book Natural History about the dazzling colors featured in the October birthstone.
Humans have been mesmerized by the hypnotic colors of opal for many centuries. The round opal in this 14K white gold diamond ring shows a multi-hued play-of-color effect set against a light background with translucent clarity.
0 kommentar(er)
