Precious Opal is a silicate with high moisture content.  It doesn’t have a precise structure but does contain layers of tiny silica spheres, which affect the light passing through and thus give the astonishing rainbow of colours for which Opal is famous. Opal is wonderful for bringing out creativity and emotional imagination. It’s a fun stone which encourages you to get out of your comfort zone, so can also be a bit unbalancing - hence it teaches centring ! There’s a lot of potential with this stone to enhance psychic development and bring out your true and original self.

Opals come in 3 broad categories. Solid Opals are the most expensive especially since so much Opal is found only in thin veins. Doublets are made from a thick slice of Opal  (1- 2mms thick) bonded to an ironstone backing. Doublets have the same depth of fire and dancing light as solid Opals but are much more affordable. Triplets are cheapest but only have the thinnest wafer of Opal ( measured in microns ! ) sandwiched between plastic. 

97% of the world's Opal comes from Australia, though some fabulous Ethiopian Opal has been discovered recently. All Ethiopian Opals are solid as they form in a slightly different way.