Name: Fresh Water Pearl and African Opal Earrings with Gold Color Base Metal French Ear Wire
SKU: 822758

Product Details ＋

Fresh Water Pearl and African Opal Earrings with Gold Color Base Metal French Ear Wire
Approx. 2" drop from ear
Bead Size Approx : Pearl approx. 5mm x 8mm; African Opal approx. 8mm
The gemstone Opal is the official October birthstone.Opal is related to quartz, although it is much softer due to its high water content.As light enters the Opal, it bends around the edges of tiny particles of hydrated silica, "chips" of silicon and oxygen suspended in water within the stone. When it is diffracted, the light that is made up of all visible colors, each with its own wavelength, produces an entire rainbow of colors.They can internally display virtually any color, and Opals with the most “fire” are the most valuable.Diffraction can cause flashes of any color of the rainbow (opalescent). Australia produces 97% of the world’s Opals, although the reddish-orange “fire” Opals are mined in Mexico.The name Opal was probably derived from Sanskrit "upala", meaning "valuable stone". This was most likely the root for the Greek term "opallios", which translates as "color change". In the days of Roman antiquity there existed a so-called "opalus", or a "stone from several elements".Common folklore rumors Opals may increase intuition, enhance clairvoyance, and reveal the truth.

Pearl is the official birthstone for the month of June and is also the birthstone for the Sun Signs of Gemini and Cancer.Pearls have been used for adornment for more than 6,000 years. By 2500 B.C. there was already a substantial Pearl trade in China. The “ideal” Pearl is perfectly round and smooth, although more often they form in irregular shapes.An organic gem, Pearls are formed inside mollusks such as oysters and mussels. They are formed when an irritant such as a tiny stone or bit of sand gets inside the mollusk's shell. A lustrous substance, called nacre, is secreted around the object to protect the soft internal surface of the mollusk. As layer upon layer of nacre coats the irritant, a Pearl is formed. Light that is reflected from these overlapping layers produces a characteristic iridescent luster. This process of building a solid Pearl can take up to seven or eight years.
The most valuable Pearls are perfectly symmetrical, relatively large and naturally produced. The principal oyster beds lay in the Persian Gulf, along the coasts of India and Sri Lanka, and in the Red Sea. Chinese Pearls come mainly from freshwater rivers and ponds, whereas Japanese Pearls are found near the coast in salt water.