What’s inside the nobby opal: Part 2

Last week I explained in detail the features of rough opal nobbies and what to look out for. This week I’ll show you exactly what we get out of the piece of rough opal by cutting that very piece.

We spoke about the white cap on the top and the other features that makes most opal people go weak at the knees. The video does do a quick review but you can read more here.

In this video I expose the gems secrets and critique the nobby opal. In addition cutting and critiquing I also estimate a value which I know is useful as you all keep asking me to do it!

For the impatient amongst you, here is a time stamp for what happens when.

0:10 Recap on the rough opal nobby plus a prediction on the finished piece.

3:20 Starts to rough out and cut the nobby

8:20 Shows the finished rub and proceeds to do some dumb stuff 

11:00 Grading and Valuing the finished stone

Enjoy the video and please leave like or a comment as I love to know if you are enjoying, learning or bored 🙂

The grading considerations (BONUS!)

Now the nobby opal is finished we can go through what makes it a nice gem

1. Cabochon. The high dome on this gem gives nice depth to the color play as the color bar is thick giving the piece strong color brightness.
2. The Potch. The grey outer potch started to turn black inside the piece and turning the what could have been a dark opal into a black opal. The presence of this black patch gives the opal more value
3. The Cut. The rough opal piece was an ideal piece to cut into an oval with a nice dome without loosing too much of the color bar.
4. Bodytone and brightness. The body tone just made it into the black opal category being an N4 and the brightness is outstanding at B5 (Vivid). The red and green color mixture is extremely desirable and rare bringing the value of the piece high.
5. Inclusion. There is a residual inclusion in the opal that does bring the value down by around 20 % making it worth around $4500 per carat. @1.81 carats thats $8000 USD, give or take $500

The opal is currently for sale and can be found here.