An opal is a gemstone that shows many colors that seem to shift and move when you turn it in the light.
The word comes from Latin “opalus,” which came from Greek and likely from a Sanskrit word “upala” meaning “precious stone.” Over time, it narrowed from meaning any gemstone to this specific rainbow-like stone.
Opals don’t get their colors from dyes or metals, but from microscopic layers that bend light like tiny prisms. So when you tilt an opal, you’re literally watching light waves being twisted and separated in real time.
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