Fire Opal – a gemstone in the colors of fire
The fire opal owes its name to its bright orange color, which resembles fire. The different shades range from light to dark, almost reddish orange. Rich yellow or orange-yellow also occur. They give the impression that the stone is glowing from within. Fire opals can also opalize, i.e. show a play of colors. If they do, they are particularly sought after.
Depending on the color tone, the following terms are occasionally used in the trade for fire opals:
- cherry opal (for the red fire opal)
- tangerine opal (for the orange fire opal)
- lemon opal (for the yellow opal)
Fire opal and other opals
At first glance, fire opal has little in common with other opal varieties. However, it too consists of hardened silica gel. Other opals include common opal and precious opal. Common opal is widespread and, unlike precious opal, does not display any color play. Precious opals have many dazzling colors. This group includes, among others, black opal, white opal and boulder opal.
Mexico is the place of origin
While other opal stones are mainly found in Australia, fire opals mostly come from Mexico. Other significant sites are the Faroe Islands, Austria, Slovakia, Australia and North America.
Buy fire opal for fiery jewelry
If you buy a fire opal from the Igneous Gem Shop, you can have it made into fiery red glowing jewelry. Fire opal can be used for rings, earrings, bracelets or necklaces. This gemstone comes into its own alone or in combination with diamonds. As for the setting, silver as well as white and yellow gold go well with it.
According to the American Gem Society, opal is the birthstone of October. If you are still looking for a special piece of jewelry for someone born in October, you should consider a fire opal, especially if the birthday girl has a penchant for the color orange.
Properties: a gemstone of medium hardness
On the Mohs hardness scale, opal has a hardness of 5.5 to 6. Carl Friedrich Mohs developed the scale at the beginning of the 19th century by scratching stones. He assumed that harder stones could scratch softer ones. In the end, he came up with a ten-point scale, with talc as the softest mineral on level one and diamond as the hardest mineral on level ten. Opals, including the fire opal, are in the middle range. They are neither particularly hard nor particularly soft gemstones. Nevertheless, they are suitable for a variety of jewelry.
Most common cuts: facet & cabochon cut
The “fire” in the fire opal is accentuated by both the facet and the smooth cabochon cut. Milky, cloudy fire opals are usually cut into cabochons. Transparent stones, on the other hand, are usually faceted and cut into oval, round, marquise, pear or cushion shapes.
From time to time, fire opal rough stones are used as pendants for necklaces and bracelets.
