cooper@pbsvax.DEC (Topher Cooper DTN-225-5819) (04/17/86)
The following was part of a posting in a local bulletin board.
I frequntly wear opals, and have some that are brilliantly coloured
and beautiful. [My grandmother] told me she could not wear opals, and
proved it. She took my blue Australian opal triplet (opal covered in
[quartz] crystal and backed with black onyx - protects a soft stone and
deepens the colour) and held it in her hand. It turned milky white and
lost all colour. I took it back and the colour returned.
Does anyone have any explanations for this phenomenon?
People may post their responses, or mail them to me. I will summarize any
of the latter.
Topher Cooper
USENET: ...{allegra,decvax,ihnp4,ucbvax}!decwrl!dec-rhea!dec-pbsvax!cooper
ARPA/CSNET: cooper%pbsvax.DEC@decwrljeff@rtech.UUCP (04/20/86)
> > [My grandmother] told me she could not wear opals, and > proved it. She took my blue Australian opal triplet (opal covered in > [quartz] crystal and backed with black onyx - protects a soft stone and > deepens the colour) and held it in her hand. It turned milky white and > lost all colour. I took it back and the colour returned. > > Does anyone have any explanations for this phenomenon? > > Topher Cooper Opals will absorb moisture from the skin. When this happens, then turn milky. When the moisture evaporates, they turn back to their original colors. -- Jeff Lichtman at rtech (Relational Technology, Inc.) "Saints should always be judged guilty until they are proved innocent..." {amdahl, sun}!rtech!jeff {ucbvax, decvax}!mtxinu!rtech!jeff