Etta Larry -
Created Opal Sterling Silver Ladies Watch
Navajo Native American Indian Nation
Suggested Retail Over $ 150.00
Our Price is
Only $78.44 -
Gift Boxed, Delivered, and Insured
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W-T026
Navajo Roberta Begay
Sterling Silver Eagle Head Turquoise Gemstone Watch
Watch Tips Measure 1-1/4" x 15/16" at the
Widest Point
Compare at over $140.00
Our Low Price $77.44
Gift Boxed, Delivered and Insured
Known as the Queen of Gems, Opal can be made
synthetically. The Gilson process is considered the chemical process
closest to the way nature makes opal. Created by Pierre Gilson Sr. in
1974 in a laboratory in France, the process produces opal that mimics
all the chemical and physical properties of genuine opal and takes 14 to
18 months to grow. Silicon spheres are generated and line up in
straight-line formation to produce a diffraction grating and the effect
of spectral colors or refraction. The spheres are then surrounded by a
material that is strong enough to withstand cutting and polishing; only
silicon-based material can properly be called synthetic opal. These
opals have all the elements of natural opal except water, which makes
them equally beautiful but not prone to breaking as natural opal is.
Because of it's durability, this is why Gilson Opal is more commonly
used in jewelry today.
According to information from the U.S. Geological Survey, natural opal
is brittle, heat sensitive, and breaks and scratches easily; some
varieties "self-destruct" through the loss of water, resulting in fine
cracks that extend over the surface until they intersect and cause the
gem to crumble. Nevertheless, opal is still a premier gemstone.
