Fire Opal – A Confusing Terminology

By Author: Ali C. Underwood
Total Articles: 39
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Fire Opal is one term that’s really got people racking their minds in confusion and every customer and seller has got a different view from another. Well there are a number of Opals all in two categories, common and precious opals and Fire Opal lies in the precious category. They admired ever since the ancient times and valued so much that it was claimed to be created in the waters of paradise. So what do we know about Opals?

Well, the thing is the most significant fire Opal deposits lie in the Mexican Highlands due to the existence of any extinct volcanoes. This Mexican Fire Opal exists in an orange red tone but these can also be found in other countries though in little quantities that don’t necessarily spark any economic significance. But this doesn’t mean that no other country produces fire opals.

The name was brought forth due to the color of the stones and it’s the red flare in the Opal that guarantees its position as a member of the coveted Fire Opals. This is what has caused so many more stones to be termed as this way. In Brazil Opals of shades of orange to yellow were discovered and some even ...
... have large sizes of up to a human fist and guess what they called them…Fire Opals. Australia also harbors a mine of these colored rocked and as expected, they are also Fire opals. Though the Australian Fire Opal is quite different from the Mexican Opal, it’s more stable which makes Australia account for almost 90% of the world’s Opal production.

Fire Opals are not all equal, the quality caries and some come coupled with a wide range of colors all in one rock. It’s also worth noting that a fire opal doesn’t necessarily have to be reddish but the color range can cover a vast plethora including brilliant shades of green, blue and even yellow. A pink opal is also an example of these stones.

So there you have ready in existence and have the ground info close by.