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Author Topic: Perfect Harlequin  (Read 1637 times)

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Asianfire

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Perfect Harlequin
« on: June 02, 2015, 08:08:55 AM »



Perfect Harlequin

Postby peterpan » Mon Nov 26, 2012 4:37 am
Around 1970 I purchased a parcel of 14 mile Coober Pedy rough opal, I had been cutting commercially for only a couple of years, still pretty green,the parcel comprised of around 20 pieces equaling 22 oz.of top grade opal, 14 mile opal was dark base, around N6 to N7, it rarely produced full colour rough, instead it had strong thick single bars of colour, it was notable for pattern and brilliance, most peices in the parcel weighed over an ounce except one, which was around 30 cts, so I sliced and cut the parcel leaving the small one till last, when I finally examined the last stone it's colour bar was only around 1 mm thick, sick of cutting for the day, was going to leave it till the next day, then I noticed a strange appearance in the edge of the bar, it had regular vertical lines, around 3 mm apart right around the stone, you guessed it, a perfect harlequin, not a flagstone harlequin or any one of the fancy harlequin names thrown about these days, it was 14 cts , perfectly flat face, and had perfect squares of colour about 3 mm each alternating pink and green, no two squares of the same colour adjoined and each square was exactly the same size.
I was, as i said green, but i new enough to know it was special, but just how special it was i only came to realise many years later, now, after a lifetime of viewing somewhere between half a million and a million opals, i have only seen one other, it was a doublet, oh to see and own it now when i can really appreciate it.
No , to my knowledge it was never photographed, i assume it is still in some lucky person's collection.




Re: Perfect Harlequin

Postby PinkDiamond » Mon Nov 26, 2012 6:10 am
Oh, that's a crime against opals to not have taken a few shots of that one. We need one for the pattern chart because there's no true harlequin photos available that we can use. I hope you've learned your lesson. :lol:



Re: Perfect Harlequin

Postby peterpan » Mon Nov 26, 2012 6:26 am
try Len Cram, i think he has one, or Rudy Webber at gem studies laboratory sydney, his business is opal photography



Re: Perfect Harlequin

Postby peterpan » Mon Nov 26, 2012 12:09 pm
his business is the supply of opal photos to the media or anyone who will pay, not sure if he sells the photos by the carat, can put you in touch with him.



Re: Perfect Harlequin

Postby PinkDiamond » Mon Nov 26, 2012 12:17 pm
I don't own the site, and I doubt the owner would pay to use pics for the pattern chart so I guess we're still on the lookout for one we can use - that's free. Forgive me for not specifying that. :wink:
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