Opal - October's Birthstone

Almost 95% of opals originate in deserts of Australia - with the remaining 5% from Brazil, Mexico and Nevada.

The name 'opal' is derived from the Greek word 'opallios', which may be translated as 'colour change'.


W2754 Art Nouveau Style Opal Pendant

Opals may be found in a range of colours, the most desirable being the black opal (which may be dark blue or dark green infact), closely followed by the creamy white when it displays colour flashes or schillers.

No other gemstone has such a continually changing display of fire and colour (opalescence), and it is this that affects the price of any opal.







W1670
Victorian Dress Ring




In some circles, opals may be considered unlucky, but this may be because of the variation and fluctuation in stone water content (ususally 2 - 6%) which may cause fissures within the gem if allowed to 'dry out'.

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Silver Decoration

As website administrator I regularly upload items of silver described as having 'chased, embossed or engraved decoration' - so what does that mean?

Chased decoration is achieved by the use of steel punches and hammers to indent or push the silver into differnt patterns, as opposed to engraved decoration, where metal is carved or removed.


W2426 An Edwardian Tray with applied chased acanthus leaf and shell decoration

Embossed decoration, also referred to as repousse or chasing in relief, is accomplished by hammering the back side of an item to provide the basic simple shape, with further detail and definition achieved by chasing to achieve the desired effect.


W 2228 A Victorian christening mug with embossed and chased decoration.

Finally, engraved decoration is perhaps what it says on the tin, in that an engraver would use a tool called a graver to remove a small amount of silver from the surface of an object. Ostensibly engraving was freehand, enabling the engraver to customise items with not only decoration but monograms, crests, coats of arms and inscriptions.


W2359 A George III sauceboat with engraved initials

Bright cut engraving entailed cutting short, angled, reflective facets to achieve a 'bright' decorative effect.


W2426 An Edwardian tray with bright cut engraved fern leaf and shell decoration to the surface.


So now you know!!

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