Five Opal Patterns Explained
Every opal is unique but with my help, there are a few common patterns that you’ll be able to recognise!
Today I’m going to take you through some of the stones in stock and talk about five different opal patterns.
Moss Pattern
Moss pattern is common to the Grawin Opal Fields in Lightning Ridge and shows a fairly even play of color that moves within the ‘moss’, never disappearing.
Sky Mackerel Pattern
Sky Mackerel pattern is a rare pattern that looks like the rippled clouds of a sunset sky.
Chinese Writing / Script Pattern
Chinese Writing (or Script) pattern is called so because it looks like the visual art of Chinese calligraphy within the opal. This is quite a rare pattern and one of my favorites.
Broad Flash Pattern
Broad Flash pattern shows a broad flash of color that moves across the whole stone and then disappears.
Rolling Flash Pattern
Similar to Cats Eye pattern in other gemstones, Rolling Flash pattern rolls across the face of the stone in an impressive color show.
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This is part 2 of opal patterns explained (you can catch up with part 1 here). Now that you are familiar with the differences between Rolling Flash and Broad Flash patterns, we introduce another fi...