Opal-AN (Hyalite Opal) with Carbonate-rich Fluorapatite (var: Staffelite)

When it comes to Hyalite Opal - the proper name is Opal (var Opal-AN) - the specimens from Valec are the most famous in my mind. This material is essentially colorless and resembles lustrous glass beads. The historic old mines are now closed as they lay in a military reservation, and these specimens will never be found again. This beautiful piece features a group of intergrown glistening, colorless, spherical "bead"-like nodules of Opal-AN which have a stunning internal gemminess and are smartly sitting on host rock matrix.

If you look closely, you can see small patches of bright rainbow "color flash" in the spheres, which is rare for this material. Additionally, spherical whitish "balls" of Carbonate-rich Fluorapatite (var: Staffelite) can be seen on the piece as well. If you're an Opal collector, this is a worthwhile representative piece of classic material, with the famous "Staffelite" association. Valued highly for the size, quality and near non-existence on the market, especially in large cabinet display specimens.

Specimen # WWMIX111910