DESCRIPTION

Black Opal is the most sought after of the opals and is sourced primarily from Lightning Ridge, New South Wales. High quality stones are very rare. It is easily distinguished by the darkness of the “body tone” of the background or the color of the body. Black opal shows a play of color in or on a black colored body when viewed from the front. It can be crystalline or opaque.

Some black opals feature a light crystalline bar on a dark opal potch (colorless opal). This gives the otherwise light opal a dark appearance. Even the most expensive black opals can only have a very thin bar of color on a black potch. Black opal with flashes of bright red is extremely rare. Due to its relative rarity compared to clear opal and even boulder opal, it tends to be more expensive, with equivalent colors, clarity and patterns.