History

“The noble or precious opal, giving out different colored rays in bewildering succession, constitutes one of the most beautiful ornamental stones in existence, and has always been regarded as one of the most desirable and attractive for personal use.

The opal was prized by the ancients above most other precious stones. The Romans obtained their supply from the East… but the largest did not exceed the size of half a hazelnut, except the famous opal of Nonius, who preferred exile rather than surrender it to Mark Antony.”

~S.M. Burnhan, Precious Stones in Nature, Art and Literature

Originally brought to the ancient world by traders from the Bosporus, opal has a very long history and rich legacy.

It is found in small quantities in only a few locations worldwide that include the Americas, Central Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Horn of Africa. Yet by far the largest producer of opals worldwide is Australia, and South Australia in particular.

South Australia alone generates approximately 80% of the world’s supply. The provenance of the Andamooka Opalstone is Andamooka, South Australia – a claim in the Australian outback where rich veins of high quality opal was discovered in the early twentieth century and continues to be explored.