He then gave the ring to his grandmother, who also died, and the tragedy continued with his sister and his sister-in-law. Finally, he put the ring on his own finger and died.
In reality, the family probably died of cholera. One of the worst blows to the opal's reputation came in the form of the novel "Anne of Geierstein" by Sir Walter Scott. The opal changed color with the heroine's moods. Then when her opal is touched by holy water, it discolors. She is accused of being a demon and dies shortly after.
The public was so affected by this story that the opal market actually crashed and prices dropped by 50 percent [source: Pegg ].
Another theory about why it's bad luck to wear opals if they're not your birthstone is a simple one; it was a rumor spread by diamond traders. When opals began gaining popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries, diamond merchants got nervous about losing business. The jealous traders started spreading rumors that opals were bad luck to prevent people from buying them. Sign up for our Newsletter! Mobile Newsletter banner close. Mobile Newsletter chat close. Mobile Newsletter chat dots.
Mobile Newsletter chat avatar. Mobile Newsletter chat subscribe. Why is it bad luck to wear opals if you weren't born in October? Wealthy Romans gave opals to their wives to wear as talismans. It was carried as a good luck charm since the Romans thought that due its rainbow-like appearance the Opal could bring its owner good fortune.
To the Romans, the Opal was also considered as a token of hope. The Opals were originally thought to possess magical qualities and bring its wearer foresight. They were also used to help timid and shy people be more open in social situations, because the Opal was thought to amplify feelings and desires, thus promoting spontaneity.
There was a time in which the Opals were associated with famine and pestilence. In this novel, the Baroness of Arnheim uses a talisman made of Opal bestowed with magical powers, and when a drop of holy water tarnishes the talisman, the opal loses its colors and the Baroness dies just a moment thereafter. Because of that scene, people started to associate opals with bad omen and death. This novel was so popular, that it alone had a bad influence on opal sales just within a year of its publishing.
To this day, the prejudice against Opals is oddly present. If someone decides to wear an Opal as an accessory, then that person will decide what the Opal represents, because not only the Opal has a wide variety of superstitions around it, it also has a unique and natural beauty in its many colors. According to the story, the Baroness dies when a drop of holy water falls onto the opal and drains the stone of its colour.
In the 19th Century, opal's reputation also took a hit as the cause of falling monarchies, famine, pestilence, and the Black Plague - Europeans started believing a bright and colourful opal worn by a patient lost its brilliance after the wearer died.
Disgruntled diamond traders also played a big hand in fuelling the bad luck myth at the turn of the through one of the oldest marketing tactics around — word of mouth. At the turn of the 20th century, a large amount of opal was making its way to markets in the USA, Europe and England, causing then emerging diamond specialists De Beers to panic at the prospect of opal becoming more popular than diamonds.
To ensure diamonds retained a bigger market share, De Beers avidly propagated a rumour that opals were bad luck and promoted it with gusto. Another possible reason opals were promoted as bad luck by diamond traders is that the gemstone is softer than a diamond - around 6 versus 10 on Mohs scale of mineral hardness.
As such, opals sometimes crack if a great amount of heat or pressure is applied, making them tricky for some jewellers to work with. Australian opal has become increasingly popular and increased in value over the past decade, and is often the gemstone of choice by leading jewellery designers like jeweller to the stars Irene Neuwirth.
Recent news articles have also shown that there is a veritable fortune to make in mining opal as demand booms, and new rushes are highly sought after for those with their eyes on the glittering prize. So, in reality, the story that opal causes bad luck is now nothing more than an old-fashioned urban myth. Be sure to tell anyone who doubts opal's beauty and popularity just how the poor gemstone has been unfairly treated over the years, and how its brightness, vivid colour, mystery and good luck attributes have continued to shine through, making it one of the most popular coloured gemstones today.
Do you have a good or bad luck opal story to tell? Contact us as we'd love to hear all about it.
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