Sterling silver dagger necklace featuring a unique boulder opal with tourmaline accent. The opal blade measures 27 x 5mm, and weighs 4.2 carats, set in double claw prongs. Finishing off the design, the green tourmaline draws the eye downward to the point, measures 8 x 4mm and weighs in at 0.47ct.
Handcarved, one of a kind pendant measures 2" long, and is attached to a sterling bar link chain to echo the long and slender lines. Chain measures 18" and entire necklace is just over 19"
Boulder opal is comprised of opal material found in small deposits in ironstone. Mining this unique stone requires a sharp eye to seek out the ribbons of rainbow in the desert rock formations. Boulder opal is found primarily in the desert outback of Queensland, Australia, in cracks, crevices and cavities. Silica from dissolved sand trickled down cracks and crevices in ironstone boulders and the silica precipitated out of this solution to form these radiant colors. Generally, the opal is found within boulders which need to be broken open. These are found in clay layers just above the ironstone, and sometimes tons of rock must be hand-processed to find a few precious stones.
The stonecutter has to be particularly skilled to showcase the vivid colors, and the ripples of brown and gray that you see in this stone are ironstone that the opal formed in.
