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As primitive man so cherished a hot, red fire in the blackness of night, so do gem lovers of the world value above all other opals, the red on black opal. Every gemstone category has its primadona and the red multicolor black opal can command $20,000
plus per carat.
Many factors contribute to the identification of such a superb gem black opal. The location of its mine of origin is the first consideration, Australia being the most desirable as the gem quality opal there is of sedimentary formation rather than
volcanic. It is Australian black that I refer to now: The blackness of the base color, the brilliance of the fire, the predominance of red, the richness of the red, the quality of the other colors with the red (heliotrope, yellow, cornflower blue,
electric green, gold, bronze) the rareness and desirability of the pattern of the fire, the directionality of the fire (is the color play "ON" at all angles of viewing), the fluidity and mobility of color and pattern, the shape and size of the stone, and
the overall composite appeal of all these factors. All of these are part and parcel of the gem look, that special magic, hence gem value, of the opal.
Opal aficionados have their individual preferences, but market consensus gives top dollar value to red on black. The Red Robin, Red Admiral, Black Prince, Pride of Australia, Firestorm, The Flamingo, The Cardinal, The Southern Princess, and The Flame
Queen are among the list of precious , world renown, red on black gem opals. A list could be made too of many secretly bought and sold exquisite red stones if it all were not so exactly that, secret! The lists go on and on. Both the famous named and
the secret red on black beauties commanded royal prices.
The colors within an opal have been observed by electron microscopes to be the result of the breaking up of light into the spectral colors. Red is the color caused by diffraction of light at the interface of the voids which are created by the three
dimensional grates of 3,000 to 4,000 angstrom wide silica spheres. The diameter of the spheres control the size of the voids . For simplicity, envision stacks of egg cartons with the egg cups representing the silica spheres and the spaces between cups,
the voids.
To explain the blackness of the opal from which the red fire flashes is not as easy . I can tell you that all potch ( opal with no fire/common opal ) is made up of irregularly shaped and irregularly stacked silica spheres. However, potch can be many
colors ranging from clear, white, yellow, green, orange, red, grey, leady grey, charcoal, black, to glassy black. There is controversy over what it is about black potch that makes it so black. These assorted theories range from formation in black swamp
water, carbon molecules, manganese presence, to properties inherent in the structure that causes the absorption of white light resulting in non-light or black. I leave this argument to the scientists.
To the romantics, the poets, the opalholics, I liken the magic of the red on black to the red heart of Australia, its fiery desert sunsets, its redback spiders ( themselves tiny replicas of a black cabochon with a bloodred spot) that appear to be the
guardians of every opal mining shaft, and the dancing flashes of red in a black Antarctic sky known as the Aurora Australis.
To the investment minded collector I equate the red on black opal to the pink diamond, the Burmese pigeon blood ruby, the Columbian blue green emerald, and the Tahitian Peacock or Aubergine black pearl.
To the historian I tell the tale of hope for another season of mining being paid for with the proceeds of a red on black beauty found by a red eyed gouger in the face of his drive fifty feet underground in Lightning Ridge, Australia. I tell you of the
oldtimers in the early 1900s that used to throw away the beautiful blue/green stones because it was only the red on blacks that were marketable. Many a modern day miner has made money on processing the throw away stow dirt from that time frame. Nearly
with tears in my eyes, I tell you of the famous "Black Prince", which was dropped onto the floor and broken in two, but due to its good size and quality still retained great value.
Be it the past or the present, each miner dreams of red on blacks as he stares into the comfort and company of his evening fire. He is mesmerized by the red glowing coals into reminices of long gone red beauties he has mined or had the privelege of
viewing. Mostly he conjures up visions of the prized red on blacks his days traces promised him will be forthcoming, perhaps in the next few tons of dirt he shifts.
Outback Gems Show Schedule
Outback Gems will be in the March 1 and 2 show in Phoenix, Arizona. This is the Maricopa Lapidary Society's Rock, Gem, and Mineral Show held at the Mountain Preserve building on Dunlap just East of Twelfth Street. Mr. Len Cram, the author of ten books
on Australian opal will be at the show along with Gwen Burney, an Australian opal cutter from Yowah, Queensland. They, Ron and myself will be there to answer all your opal questions. Len will be happy to autograph any of his books you may have or wish to
purchase.
Gwen and Len will be at Barbara's lecture on Yowah, Queensland Australian opal at the Mesa Arizona Leisure World Activity Center on March 11th. After the two Australian notables head home, Outback Gems will be in Cottonwood, Arizona for the Verde Valley
Rock and Gem Show March 29 and 30th.
Outback Gems Opal Tours
Barbara and Ron's maiden trip "AUSTRALIAN OUTBACK OPAL EXPEDITION" A Customized Tour, is scheduled to leave April 4th, l997 with an April 23rd return to L.A. You may arrange to stay and spend time in Sydney at the end of the tour if you desire. There
are several openings on this expedition still left . In order to keep the expedition personalized to each individual's special interests beyond opal, the groups will be limited to no more than eight travelers per trip. E mail Outback Gems for a copy of
the trip brochure. The one time only tour price offer for the virgin voyage is $3500 per person which includes 20 days accommodations, meals, and all transportation round trip from L.A. to Australia including excursions within the outback interior. All
opal mining processing tools and equipment will be provided along with appropriate permits. As an added bonus, tour guests of Outback Gems will keep all opal they find mining, up to the purchase price of their tour! Please contact us as soon as possible
for this virgin voyage, as it leaves soon and travel arrangements need to be made for every person on the tour.
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Copyright, 1997 by Barbara McCondra
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Barbara McCondra is a popular lecturer who travels widely on speaking
tours. Her son Ron Vil, who mined with her for many years, is the
owner of Outback Gems, specializing in Australian Opal including,
Lightning Ridge and Yowah Nut Boulder opal. They were featured in the
June 1995 issue of Lapidary Journal. You can contact Barbara through
Outback Gems, voice and/or Fax 602-846-0407 or email at
RedonBlack@AOL.com.
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