Opal-AN (Hyalite Opal) ("Blood Vessel Opal") (fluorescent)

Item Description

This material is some of the most unique and eye-catching Opal you will find from any contemporary locality. This large miniature / small cabinet specimen is a gorgeous piece that came from the fairly new discovery at the Étienne Mine in San Luis Potosi, Mexico in January of 2019. When it comes to Opal, there are lots of localities and styles for the species around the world, but I have to say that these are some of the most attractive, unusual, interesting and impressive Hyalites from anywhere. It's important to note that while this kind of material is often labeled as "Hyalite", but that term is no longer a valid name, this material is now called Opal-AN. An mentioned, in January 2019 there was an impressive discovery of some really eye-catching specimens from this tiny little mine A good friend of ours is exclusively mining this material, and we are getting it directly from the source. These specimens have been given the nickname "Blood Vessel Opal" due to the glowing orange and red inclusions of iron oxide that resemble capillaries under the surface. This particular specimen features rather gemmy to translucent spherical groups or "balls" of Hyalite that range from completely colorless to soft shades of white / grey-blue at the base, but the upper portion is loaded with the intense red to orange colored "blood vessel" inclusions which look beautiful under magnification. Like a lot Hyalite specimens, this piece shows a brilliant green fluorescence under SW UV light, but only in the areas where the "blood vessels" are not prevalent. There are very few of these on the market, and you honestly can't find anything else like them out there. A great piece for anybody who collects Mexican minerals, worldwide Opals or fluorescent minerals. A wonderful specimen of this beautiful Opal variety. We had this one priced at $950 in the inventory. Weight on the specimen is 79.30 grams.