Black opals are one of the rarest and costliest types of opals. The main characteristic of this type of opal is the dark body that can range from dark grey to jet-black. The colour refers to the body tone of the stone and not related to various rainbow colours present in the opal.
The south sea pearls, which have dense white or half-white hue throughout the stone, is the costliest version of this gemstone. Unlike these pearls, a completely black stone means it is worthless and cannot be used for making any form of jewellery.
The black opals are the costliest and rarest of all the opals. It is mainly because of its dark shade because of carbon and traces of iron oxide. The dark shade helps in highlighting the rainbow colours, which cannot be seen on a white or light coloured opals.
More the vibrancy of colours, the costlier the stone. For making the stone worthy to use in jewellery making, the back of the stone is attached with a black surface that helps in increasing the darkness of the stone and strength as well.
Few stones have a natural layer of potch left on the back of the stone, which provides extra darkness and vibrancy of hues as well. The darker the stone, the higher the price it can fetch.
Generally the stones are cut into oval shapes, but the natural shape of the stone will play a major role in deciding the final shape. Freeform or teardrop are the other forms of the stone that fetch a higher price in the market.
A genuine dealer can give the best opal at the correct price. So before purchasing opal, verify the prices from two to three dealers.
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