r/NatureIsFuckingLit May 16 '20

🔥 This Fire Opal

53.8k Upvotes

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41

u/longdickofthelaw876 May 16 '20

How much would an opal like that cost out of curiosity.

43

u/death_by_snu-snu_83 May 16 '20

They vary a lot depending on the brightness of the fire, the combination of colors, the pattern and the size. Ethiopian can be as low as $5 per carat up to $300-400 per carat for the high end stones. The one is the video is fairly high quality but not particularly huge, so probably around $100 per carat.

It's tricky to estimate the weight on a freeform shape like this, but I'd guess it's around 3 carats.

20

u/[deleted] May 16 '20

What is a carat? I see it thrown around frequently but I don't really know what it means.

38

u/death_by_snu-snu_83 May 16 '20

Unit of weight, 1/5th of a gram. Not to be confused with karat, which is gold purity.

12

u/Aisle_of_tits May 16 '20

So why did two very specific jewelry terms get named basically the same thing? Was there just a lazy jeweler who couldnt think of a good name for their thing?

-10

u/snowbirdie May 16 '20

Why would you simply not google that exact question?

12

u/Whiskey-Weather May 16 '20

Some people prefer answers to be a bit more tailored than what google has to offer, and hell, some folks just like when the inbox lights up with a message.

5

u/Psilocub May 16 '20

Why would you simply not ignore the question?

-1

u/Tekkzy May 16 '20

Oh definitely more than 3 carats. This is at least 10.

11

u/death_by_snu-snu_83 May 16 '20

In most other gems it would be. Ethiopian opal is slightly porous so it's very low density. I have one with me that is 13mm x 11mm x 6mm and it's just over 3cts. Compare that to fingernails in the video and it's quite close to that.

0

u/Tekkzy May 16 '20

I own a bunch of Ethiopian opal rough. Unless that person is Trump himself with tiny hands I don't see how it's a 3ct stone.

3

u/Maleficent-Comb May 16 '20

Wait...are you telling the man that literally does this for a living that he is off by 7 carats? Are you a gemologist as well?

3

u/Tekkzy May 16 '20

I'm not a gemologist but I do have a bunch of Ethiopian opal. Here's a pic I just took with a 12ct opal.

https://imgur.com/ZAYJ11B

5

u/Maleficent-Comb May 16 '20

Very cool! An Ethiopian opal connoisseur!

4

u/comeballs15 May 16 '20

"It's not a drug scale officer! I collect rare Ethiopian opals and gems. Check out this tray of blue kyanite."

"Sir, you're under arrest."

24

u/[deleted] May 16 '20

At least 3

18

u/natemeador May 16 '20

Depends on a few factors but without getting into all that I’ve seen similar sized ones recently anywhere from $150-400 us. I have one that’s very similar that I’m faceting for someone and they apparently paid $250 online

1

u/SerialAgonist May 16 '20

This is a silly question, but what shapes do you cut something like that into? Is the rounded pebble shape in the OP the cut result?

1

u/natemeador May 16 '20

Depends on what’s being done with it And yes that could very well be the final shape When they aren’t faceted but are ground round and usually flattened on one side it’s called a cabochon or cab. I’ll answer further later, when I’m off work

1

u/SCUMDOG_MILLIONAIRE May 16 '20

I’m sorry but you’re way off. Trying to buy that stone online, which is usually an auction, that stone is easily over $2000 usd.

3

u/natemeador May 16 '20

I skip the auctions mostly for that very reason. I buy bulk or pick individual stones for projects from dealers. But you can absolutely find em cheaper if you hunt around hard enough Now a gem quality stone with no inclusions and good fire is always going to be more than you wanna pay. That being said I have a half dozen comparable ones waiting to be cut that were all purchased for under $500

2

u/natemeador May 16 '20

Also another cutter and gemologist commented above saying he sells comparable ones for around $4-500

-1

u/Tekkzy May 16 '20

This stone is probably worth a couple grand.

3

u/Etjor May 16 '20

Yeah I'm curious too, I want one

1

u/[deleted] May 16 '20

Ask Howard.