The world’s finest uncut opal, a 998-gram gem called the Fire of Australia, has gone on permanent public display for the first time since its discovery more than 60 years ago. Valued at more than $675 ...

Where to begin with this story? There’s the soap opera angle, reportedly involving bitter infighting among city politicians over a precious gem thought by at least one person to be bad luck. There’s ...

The beautiful optical properties of the gemstone opal are the result of tiny amounts of uranium present when the stones were formed, say researchers in Australia. They claim that their work could lead ...

If you want to do business with the government, go to Washington, D.C. If you want to do business with bankers, go to Wall Street. If you want to do business in opals, go to Coober Pedy, Australia.

OF precious gems the opal and the pearl take pride of place, for they seem to become part of their wearers, throwing up their beauty and receiving from them additional lustre. Our author has tried ...

Unlike any other town known as a hole in the ground, Australia’s Coober Pedy really is a hole, and has two kinds of buried treasure. Unlike any other town known as a hole in the ground, Australia’s ...