Struck by Lightning (Ridge) - Part 2

Lightning Ridge is all about opal mining of course, so when you're there you make a point of going into an opal mine or two, and you check out a few of the opal shops.

We learned a few things about the precious gemstone. Like that in many parts of the world they not only don't think it's  precious, but they even think it  brings bad luck. I'd not  known this, and I've been wondering since about whether all those bits of opal jewellery I've given to European relatives in the past were entirely appropriate. We learned that the bad luck story was put around by De Beers, the diamond people, in the early 20th century, to ward off the opal threat to their prosperity.

Here's a picture of a nice stone, courtesy Opalauctions.com.

We  learned also about the difference between doublets, triplets, and solid opal. The latter is the most valuable, and Lightning Ridge's black opal is said to be the best and most valuable in the world. Opal was formed through rather mysterious processes involving acidic weathering of sandstone, the drying out of the interior of Australia, and, I think they said, trace elements getting in there somehow and producing the amazing colours. Dinosaur bones sometimes got turned into fossilised opal too, and this is an exciting new field of study these days. Here's Australian Geographic's take on opal formation:  http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2013/05/uncovered-the-truth-about-opal-formation/

 In the Lightning Ridge area the opal is found within a thin layer of kaolin clay between sandstone layers. In the underground mine pictured above, you can see the lighter clay layer, where the miners have dug deeper into the sides.

There are some big open cut opal mines around, but there are also thousands of small underground efforts, where countless individuals have, and still do, beaver away in the hope of striking it big. Some undoubtedly have made fortunes. Some are said to have made a reasonable living, but the majority have probably made little. The lifestyle suits them all anyway.

Just watch where you step. The lunar landscape is covered in holes (not always well covered), and mullock heaps. And all kinds of makeshift engineering equipment, abandoned cars and trucks, and the like.