Natural Ethiopian Welo Opal Pendant in Sterling Silver – Ed Lohman

 I really need to do some videos of these. They are INSANELY gorgeous. This one has a soft blue body color underneath, but as soon as the stone moves, you start picking up bright green, yellow, orange, and red. The flashes aren't limited to one little spot either, they show up across a good portion of the stone.

On to the geology. This is a natural Ethiopian Welo opal. These opals come from volcanic deposits in Ethiopia and formed when silica-rich water moved through porous volcanic rock, eventually depositing silica into cavities and fractures. Inside the finished opal are microscopic silica spheres. When they're arranged just right, light is diffracted into different wavelengths, creating the shifting colors known as play-of-color.

Natural opal is also one of those materials that's almost impossible to duplicate. The color pattern, intensity, and combination of flashes are determined by how that particular stone formed. You can find another Ethiopian opal, but you won't find another one with exactly this pattern.

• Natural Ethiopian Welo opal

• Strong multi-color play-of-color

• Blue body color with green, yellow, orange and red flashes

• Handmade .925 sterling silver setting

• Ed Lohman stamp

• One-of-a-kind natural opal pendant