Boulder opal Triplets OBT01
In short: "The Triplets": a set of three natural boulder opals from Australia, with a total weight of 206.37 g (1,031.85 carats).
The three stones:
- 11.1 x 4.4 x 1.2 cm, 106.53 g, i.e. 532.65 carats
- 9.4 x 4.4 x 0.6 cm, 49.30 g, i.e. 246.5 carats
- 9 x 4.2 x 0.7 cm, 50.54 g, i.e. 252.7 carats
What is boulder opal? Boulder opal comes from Queensland, Australia, where it was discovered in the 1860s. It is found in the south-west of the region: Quilpie, Yowah, Eromanga. The sedimentary rocks there date from the Cretaceous, 140 to 65 million years ago.
In these very arid regions, heavy rains dissolved tiny particles of silica. When the water evaporated, the silica crystallised into small spheres in the host rock: the opals were born. Boulder opal occurs as veins trapped in ironstone.
It is cut leaving part of this ironstone around the veins, a delicate job, because ironstone is much harder than opal.
In crystal healing: Boulder opal is said to purify and stabilise energies, and to help reach a state of deep relaxation. It is also a stone of spirituality, long used in ceremonies and rites of passage.