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Australian Opal Mines
> Andamooka Mines, SA
> Coober Pedy, SA
> Lightning Ridge, NSW
> Mintabie or Mintabee, SA
> Opalton, Qld
> Quilpie, Qld
> White Cliffs, NSW
> Winton, Qld
> Yowah, Qld
Buying Guide for Opals
> Opal Store USA
> Birthstone for October (modern); alternate for June
> Care for Opals
> Cutting Opals
> Opal Store Amazon USA
> Opal shop Australia
> Glossary of Terms
> Investing in Opals - The Value of Opals as an Investment
> Lapidary Information
> Buy Opals Australia
Famous Opals
> The Andamooka Opal (The Queen's Opal)
> Aurora Australis
> The Black Prince
> The Butterfly Stone
> The Flame Queen
> Halley's Comet
> Jupiter Five
> Olympic Australis
> Pride of Australia
> The Virgin Rainbow
History of Opals and Opal Mining
> Australian Museum National Opal Collection
> Australian Museum researches opalised fossil
> Fossicking in NSW
> Fossils, opalised fossils, sea snails and shells
> Legendary Opal Miners
> Opal Legends
> Opal Mines
> Mining Opals in Wyoming USA
> Opal Links
Types of Opal
> Black Opal
> Boulder Opal
> Crystal Opal
> Fire Opal
> Matrix Opal
> White Opal
> Yowah Nuts
> Opal Doublets
> Opal Triplets
> Opal Jewelry
Gem & Jewelry Pocket Guide:
A Traveler's Guide to Buying Diamonds, Colored Gems, Pearls, Gold and Platinum Jewelry
by Renee Newman
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Coober Pedy Opal Mines
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Stop Press! Stop Press! Stop Press!
The famous Virgin Rainbow Black Opal is for sale here!
Coober Pedy South Australia (it is not Cooper Pedy!)
Coober Pedy, South Australia is the largest producer of opal in the world - known as "The Opal Capital of the World."
The name Coober Pedy is derived from the Aboriginal word kupa piti, which when loosely translated means "White Man in a Hole".
Coober Pedy was first discovered in 1915. This is where the 'white' or 'milky' opals are mined.
An isolated and harsh location, Coober Pedy has freezing cold nights, and a daytime average temperature above 40 degrees Celsius, and bush flies by the million. Coober Pedy is too hot for life to exist comfortably on the surface, so homes were made
underground, providing a constant temperature of between 21 C and 26 C.
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The opal fields encompass an area of approximately 45 kilometres. The opal level is formed of soft pinkish clay mixed with soft bleached sandstone.
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'The Red Heart of Australia'
A solid black opal
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White Cliffs, near the South Australian border, is all but mined out but was the largest opal mine in the world before Coober Pedy was discovered.
Until recently, Coober Pedy was the main producer of precious opal, which is why it is predominantly seen in stores overseas, particularly in the USA.
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Famous Large Diamonds
Famous Gemstones
Famous Gold Nuggets
The Crown Jewels
Wedding Anniversary Gemstones
Birthstones
Jewelry - Glossary of Terms
Jewelry Information Magazine
Jewelry Store
Gioie - Italian Jewels Online
Gillett's Jewellers for Australian Opals
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