1.62 Ct.Tw.Total Carat Weight Cabochon Opal Pair from Australia

The story of these opals begins in the quiet, ochre heart of Australia, where ancient silica rich waters slowly settled into fractures and hollows of the earth, leaving behind layers of micro spheres that would, over millennia, arrange themselves into the delicate architecture that creates play of color. These are White Opal specimens, translucent and softly luminous, their body tones carrying a gentle, airy backdrop that allows flashes of red, green, and blue to travel across their surfaces like a secret conversation with light. Imagine rain soaked plains and desert nights under stars, a patient geology that works in epochs rather than hours, until a miner, following a vein of promise, recovers a raw piece that seems ordinary until sunlight reveals its inner fireworks. From that first, tentative glimpse in the soil to the moment the stone is unwrapped on a jeweler’s bench, each step in this journey imparts a quiet dignity and a story you can both wear and tell.

When these particular companions came to The Natural Gemstone Company, they were chosen for their harmony as a matched pair and for the integrity of their natural state. The duo weighs 0.79 carats and 0.83 carats respectively, each fashioned into an oval shape cabochon cut to best showcase the shifting color patches. The dimensions are 8.04 x 6.13 x 2.81 mm for the 0.79 carat stone, and 8.00 x 5.98 x 2.71 mm for the 0.83 carat stone, measurements that speak to the cutter’s care in retaining weight while achieving symmetry. Clarity is evaluated at eye level and graded very slightly included, a mark of these opals’ natural character rather than any detriment. Their color intensity reads as medium light, a balance that lets both subtle and vivid flashes be visible, and the polish is excellent, a final caress that transforms a raw gem into a surface that responds to light with silky motion. There has been no enhancement to these stones, they are untouched beyond the shaping and polishing that reveal their inner spectacle.

The crafting process itself is a narrative of restraint and respect, where the cutter listens to the stone and follows the veins of color rather than forcing a shape upon them. Cabochon cutting is an art for opal, a way to present the play of color as waves under a smooth, domed surface, and here the domes were carefully calibrated to deepen the reds and preserve the softer blues and greens without oversteepening the dome which could dull the effect. Matching two opals so closely in size, weight, and optical behavior requires selecting pieces from the same matrix or nearby pockets, and skillful trimming to achieve the final dimensions. The result is a pair that reads as a duet, each stone echoing the other while offering its own slightly different personality in color patches and inclusions. For jewelry design, these sizes and shapes are versatile, lending themselves beautifully to a pair of earrings that will flutter with each tilt of the head, to a pendant that sits close to the skin and catches ambient light, or to bespoke settings that allow metal and stone to converse.

Owning this pair is more than acquiring materials, it is adopting a small piece of a vast geological biography, a link to the land and the artisans who coaxed beauty from it. Opal has been admired through many cultures for its changing colors and its association with inspiration, illusion, and the heart’s mysteries, and these White Opals from Australia carry that lineage in a quiet, modern voice. For care, treat them gently, avoid sudden temperature changes and harsh chemicals, and clean them with a soft cloth and mild soap and water to preserve the excellent polish. If you choose to set them, consider protective settings for everyday wear, and let a skilled jeweler complement their oval cabochon form rather than overwhelm it. At The Natural Gemstone Company we stand behind the origin and authenticity of every gem we offer, and these opals are presented as natural, untreated beauties, each stone a small, luminous record of time and place. If you would like additional photos, setting suggestions, or a custom quote for these matched 0.79 carat and 0.83 carat White Opals, we would be delighted to guide you.