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Additional information       Super high polish!   Any lines seen in this gem are reflection only, perfectly transparent with a blue / purple tint.    Shows nice bright flickers / flashes of blues, greens and slight purple.    Opal is Australian cut and highly polished.    It is ready to wear as a pendant with quality black leather cord and 925 Sterling silver cord ends and clasp included.   As pictured.

100% natural, highly polished and perfectly cut gem!

The photographs and / or video of this stone were taken with indoor lighting.  Richer and more illumination of color will show in natural sunlight and when viewed in the hand.

OFFICE USE CODE  :  AF290

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  To see 'the most colorful gems in the world', our rare Canadian ammolites', and other fine opal products please visit our other 'verified' stores by clicking the logos below:                

      'OutbackGems'                  &       'OutbackOpal'         

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     ' Ammolite ' facts you should know              

The three main gem production types:

Naturals

     Suitable for pendants brooches and other light wear jewelry pieces.  Most natural gems are impregnated with a sealer, opticon, or similar process and retain their host natural stone backing.  This is not considered a treatment and is necessary to stabilize the gem.  Highly prized by collectors because only a small percentage of mined ammolite is suitable.

Quartz / spinel capped or triplets

     Suitable for all jewelry types due to its' hard wear capabilities.  Capped gems are simply two layers.  The ammolite with its' natural stone backing and a quartz or spinel cap top.  Ammolite is fragile, slightly more so than opal, at 4.5 to 5.5 Mohs.  When capped they are very well protected and attain a surface hardness of 7 - 8 Mohs, equal to emerald.

     Much time and work goes into producing these gems to a professional standard.  Ammolite capped gems are the most versatile and prefered for jewelry pieces.

     Triplets are three layered gems most commonly the process used for ammolite mosaics.

Coated

     Perhaps the most common due to the ease at which the fragile ammolite can be protected.  Also due to the fact that much ammolite has a uneven, undulating surface, and several layers of epoxy gives the gem a smooth face.  To bring these gems to a long lasting professional standard they should be sealed first with opticon, or similar process, prior to coating. 

     'VERY IMPORTANT'  the epoxy coating 'must' have a UV protection additive.  Without it the coating will discolor and yellow within years, sooner if exposed to sunlight, rendering the gem worthless!

Canadian ammolites' are:

     -     the most colorful gems on earth

     -     considered the rarest gems on earth

     -     70 million year old fossils formed from a squid / snail marine animal that is a relative of the present day nautilus

     -     difficult to aquire due to restricted mining in only one place on earth, Alberta, Canada.

     -     highly regarded amongst 'feng shui' followers

     -     truly amazing GEMS ! 

Red color is the most common, unlike precious opal where red is rarer and the most valued.  Ammolite is mostly found in reds and greens with blues and purples being less frequent and therefore more valued.  The stones that show brighter color, are less directional and with colorplay, and show three or more colors, equally, are the greater in value.  Also, as with opal, the type of pattern plays a large part in the stones value too. 

Quartz / spinel capped gems are much prefered as the ammolite becomes hard wearing and protected, whereas with opal, doublets or triplets are less desirable.

All our ammolite items are genuine.  They have been crafted and polished using very similar techniques as with our opal and many have not been treated or coated unless clearly stated in the above description section.