The beautiful optical properties of the gemstone opal are the result of tiny amounts of uranium present when the stones were formed, say researchers in Australia. They claim that their work could lead ...

What is millions of years old and is trapped inside of a rare gem? Not sure? We aren't either. But that's exactly the question a local gem dealer is trying to answer after discovering an unidentified ...

The red dirt in central Australia might be a close mimic for the red surface of Mars, suggests research that sheds light on how opals formed in the land Down Under. Precious opal is Australia’s ...

Santa Fe jewelry designer and Australian native Katherine Jetter has seen a lot of opals in her career. But when she saw "The Royal One," she actually cried."It made me cry when I saw it and I think ...

Mineral Monday is a weekly video series exploring the many amazing minerals, fossils, and historic objects on display at the W.M. Keck Earth Science and Mineral Engineering Museum as told by museum ...

It's exactly 100 years since the teenage Willie Hutchinson stumbled across a few pieces of opal while walking in the Australian Outback. There with his father to prospect for gold, the youngster's ...

What is an opal and what does it mean spiritually for the person who wears one? The name opal crystal is derived from the Latin word opalus, which means precious stone. Precious opals are the most ...

Francesca Cartier Brickell’s book on Cartier talks up semi-precious stones, as do Victoria Lampley Berens of jewellery consultancy The Stax and Sophie Howard, founder of By Pariah By Pariah’s ...