One interesting thing about opal jewellery pieces is that most of them don’t come with the same price tag. While that’s a fact, one thing you need to know is that Australian opals are pretty expensive. One reason why opals sourced from Australia are quite expensive is that the country produces 90% of the world’s opal supply.
Apart from being the highest supplier of opals globally, several other factors contribute to why Australian opal jewellery items are more expensive than products sourced from other regions. Read on to discover our experts’ views on why Australia-sourced opals are more expensive.
Here’s why Australian opals are so expensive
● Harshest weather conditions
As already mentioned, several factors contribute to why Australian opals are considered so expensive globally. One good reason, which you already know about, is that most (roughly 90%) opal jewellery pieces produced today come from Australia. You need to understand that most mining processes of opals in Australia happen in remote areas of the country. These remote locations have some of the harshest and most extreme climates globally.
Because of the very harsh climates in the remote Australian areas, mining opals are very expensive. Under normal conditions, opals need a certain amount of moisture to help them resist drying out. Unfortunately, in these remote areas, it’s pretty hard to mine opals from the ground. As such, miners in these areas need to be well-trained and experienced to ensure the successful mining of Australian opals in the harshest weather conditions.
That said, the bottom line is that Australian opals are pretty expensive because of the dedication and work that come with mining them under the harshest conditions.
● The highest supply comes from Australia
It’s no more news that Australia produces roughly 90% of the global opal supply. This factor also contributes to why Australian opals are so expensive. In addition to the harsh climate conditions in remote Australia, it’s pretty hard for miners to keep up with the ever-increasing world demand for opals. This factor also contributes to why the value of Australian opals is very high.
● Colour spectrum
Another good reason why the price of Australian opals is so high has a lot to do with their colour spectrum. Yes, these gemstone jewellery pieces are so expensive because of their spectacular spectrum of colour. Due to the colour spectrum, most opal gemstones from Australia often come with mystical intense appearances.
The bottom line is that Australian opals are also expensive because of their one-of-a-kind combinations of colour.
What determines the rarity of Australian opals?
Silica is one of the key minerals that opals are made of. While silica is pretty common today, precious opals are way too rare to come by. Today, a higher percentage of opals found today are common opals. These opals don’t come with any gem colour. Precious opals are pretty rare to come by. One thing that differentiates them from common opals is their gem colour.
That said, a few factors help to determine the rarity of opal gemstone jewellery. They include brightness, pattern, colour, body tone, and consistency. You have a very rare opal if it’s very bright and features orange and red colours. These colours are known to be very rare to come by unlike yellow (the most common), blue, and green opals. Body tone is another factor that determines the rarity of opals. The darker their body tone, the brighter the opals’ colour.
Masterpiece Jewellery sells some of the highest-quality opals
Are you interested in shopping for some of the highest quality opal jewellery pieces today? If yes, Masterpiece Jewellery is one of the few reliable platforms you can visit today to buy the best opals.
At Masterpiece Jewellery, we have experts with many years of experience and expertise working with opals, pearls, and other precious gemstones. You can visit our official website and check our opal jewellery collection to find the best opal designs that suit your taste and budget.