October Birthstone – Opal – Tourmaline
What is October Birthstone
Tourmaline and opal birthstones comes in a rainbow of shades and color combinations, giving October babies a variety of options.
Between tourmaline (whose color depends on trace elements in its chemical makeup) and opal (which diffracts light to show a play of multiple colors), October’s birthstones offer a full spectrum of gemstones to suit anyone’s personal tastes.
Opal – October Birthstone
The name “opal” originates from the Greek word opallios, which meant “to see a change in color.” The Roman scholar Pliny used the word opalus when he wrote about this gemstone’s kaleidoscopic “play” of rainbow colors that could simulate shades of any stone.
Opal’s characteristic “play-of-color” was explained in the 1960s, when scientists discovered that it’s composed of microscopic silica spheres that diffract light to display various colors of the rainbow. These flashy gemstones are called “precious opals.” Those without play-of-color are “common opals.”
Dozens of opal varieties exist, but only a few, such as fire opal and boulder opal, are universally recognized. Opals are often referred to by their background “body color” of black or white.
Opal’s classic country of origin is Australia. Seasonal rains soaked the parched Outback, carrying silica deposits underground into cracks between layers of rock. When the water evaporated, these deposits formed opal. Sometimes, silica seeped into spaces around wood, seashells and skeletons, resulting in opalized fossils.
Since opal was discovered in Australia around 1850, the country has produced 95 percent of the world’s supply. Opal is also mined in Mexico, Brazil, Honduras, Ethiopia, the Czech Republic, and parts of the U.S., including Nevada and Idaho.
The water content of opal gems can range from three to 21 percent—usually between six and 10 in gem-quality material. This, combined with hardness of only 5.5 to 6 on the Mohs scale, makes opal a delicate gemstone that can crack or “craze” under extreme temperature, dehydration, or direct light.
Wearing opal jewelry is well worth the extra care, though. This October birthstone has remained a popular choice for centuries.
Opal Meaning and History
In 75 AD, the Roman scholar Pliny compared opals to volcanoes and vibrant paintings, noting that their dancing “play” of rainbow colors could simulate shades of any gemstone.
Centuries of legends surround opal gemstones. During the Middle Ages, opal was thought to bring the wearer luck. However, that changed in the early 1800s when a story was published about an enchanted princess who wore an opal that changed colors with her moods. A few drops of holy water extinguished the stone’s magic fire, though, and the woman soon died.
Discoveries of opal deposits in Australia revived opal’s image after 1850. The country began producing 95 percent of the world’s opal gemstone supply and many of its finest opal specimens.
The world’s largest and most valuable opal, “Olympic Australis,” came from Coober Pedy, Australia in 1956, during the Olympic Games in Melbourne. Valued at $2.5 million in 2005, this gemstone measures 11 inches long and weighs 17,000 carats (7.6 pounds).
After scientists discovered the spherical silica structure of opal in the 1960s, they figured out how to create synthetic opal in 1974.
Since then, opal gemstones have gained more popularity through recent discoveries in Ethiopia. Material mined in the Shewa Province in 1994 wasn’t desirable because it was dark and tended to crack easily. Deposits in the Wollo Province, discovered in 2008, brought vivid play-of-color displays to the opal market.
Australia’s depleting supplies of classic opal have impacted the price of this uniquely kaleidoscopic gemstone. Because its flashing play-of-color can suit many changing moods and tastes, the opal stays in high demand.
How to Buy Opal
Opal’s kaleidoscopic play-of-color can suit many changing moods and tastes, making this gemstone appropriate for anyone. It is also the traditional gift to celebrate 14th wedding anniversaries.
Like diamonds, opals can be evaluated by color, clarity, cut, and carat weight. But these unique gemstones also have several additional conditions to consider.
Opal gems and jewelry should be stored in a place where they aren’t exposed to high temperatures or low humidity in order to avoid dehydration and crazing. Be sure they are in a padded cloth bag to avoid being scratched by other jewelry. For longer storage periods, place your opal in cotton wool with a few drops of water.
Color
Color is the key factor of opal quality: both the background “body color” and the flashing “play-of-color.” Dark backgrounds provide more contrast against vivid play-of-color, making black opal more highly valued than milky white varieties.
Warm colors like red and orange are generally rarer and more valuable than common blues and greens, although color range and coverage also play a role.
Pattern
Pattern is another factor unique to opal. Descriptive names like “stained glass,” “peacock,” “rolling fire,” and “Chinese writing” distinguish opal patterns. Gemologists typically prefer large, concentrated patches over small specks.
Clarity
Different opal varieties have varying clarity standards. Crystal opals should be transparent, while opacity makes black opals more valuable. A cloudy, milky haze lowers any opal’s value, and may indicate instability.
Due to high water content, opal can easily crack or “craze” under extreme temperatures, dehydration, or direct light. Crazed opal sells at much lower prices, and is more susceptible to fracture. Even high-quality opal demands delicate care to preserve its unique beauty.
Cut
Fine opals are often cut into irregular shapes to emphasize play-of-color. When possible, opals should be cut cabochon with rounded domes. But most opal comes in thin layers, which are commonly mounted on another dark stone like onyx or obsidian (as a doublet) and sometimes capped with clear glass or plastic (as a triplet) to make this fragile gemstone more wearable.
Opal gems and jewelry should be stored in a place where they aren’t exposed to high temperatures or low humidity in order to avoid dehydration and crazing. Place them in a padded cloth bag to avoid being scratched by other jewelry. For longer storage periods, place your opal in cotton wool with a few drops of water.
Opal gemstones may be treated with wax, oil, smoke, plastic, or other additives to enhance luster. Identifying enhancements or synthetic materials may require specialized lab equipment, so it’s best to work with an American Gem Society jeweler who understands the criteria that determine opal’s value.
Tourmaline – October Birthstone
The name “tourmaline” comes from the Sinhalese words tura mali, which mean “stone of mixed colors.” As its name implies, tourmaline stands apart from other gemstones with its broad spectrum of colors in every shade of the rainbow.
Tourmaline is not one mineral, but a fairly complex group of minerals with different chemical compositions and physical properties. Certain trace elements produce distinct colors, and many resulting varieties have their own names.
Black tourmaline, known as “schorl” is rich in iron, which causes dark shades from deep brown to bluish-black. This variety makes up 95 percent of all tourmaline, though most of it isn’t gemstone-quality.
Dravite or brown tourmaline is rich in magnesium, which causes colors ranging from brown to yellow. It’s named for the Drave District of Carinthina (now Slovenia) where this stone is found.
Elbaite offers the widest range of gem-quality tourmaline colors, due to lithium traces combined with other coloring elements.
Rubellite or red tourmaline is caused by manganese. However, if the color becomes less vibrant under different light sources, it may be called pink tourmaline.
Indicolite or blue tourmaline can appear purplish blue or bluish green, depending on the amount of iron and titanium.
Verdelite or green tourmaline can resemble emerald. However, if its color is caused by chrome and vanadium, it’s called a chrome tourmaline.
Paraíba tourmaline is a vividly colored purplish or greenish blue variety found in Paraíba, Brazil. It’s the most recently discovered, and because of its desirably intense colors, it’s one of the most valuable. The element copper is responsible for its vivid colors. Copper-bearing tourmaline is also found in other parts of the world such as Mozambique and Nigeria; but only copper-bearing tourmaline from Paraíba, Brazil is called “Paraíba tourmaline.”
Achroite or colorless tourmaline is rare.
Parti-colored tourmaline displays more than one color, due to chemical fluctuations during crystallization. A common color combination is green and pink. These are often cut in slices to reveal a red center surrounded by a green rim, earning the name “watermelon tourmaline.”
Tourmaline is mined in Brazil, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Mozambique, Madagascar, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the U.S.—primarily Maine and California.
Tourmaline is desirable because of its sheer range of color options. Combined with a good hardness of 7 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale, tourmaline makes very wearable birthstone jewelry.
One of this gemstone’s most impressive traits is its ability to become electrically charged through heat (pyroelectricity) and through pressure (piezoelectricity). When charged, tourmaline can act as a magnet by oscillating and by attracting or repelling particles of dust.
Tourmaline Meaning and History
Because of its colorful occurrences, tourmaline has been confused with other gemstones throughout history.
In the 1500s, a Spanish conquistador found green tourmaline in Brazil—which he mistook for emerald. His error held until the 1800s, when mineralogists finally identified tourmaline as its own mineral species.
Variations of the name “schorl” may have been used to describe black tourmaline even before 1400. The name comes from a village in Saxony, Germany, (now called Zschorlau) near a mine with black tourmaline deposits.
The Dutch East India Company brought Sri Lankan tourmaline to Europe for centuries before traders realized it was the same mineral as schorl.
American tourmaline deposits caused the gemstone’s spike in popularity. In 1876, mineralogist George Kunz launched a craze when he sold green tourmaline from Maine to Tiffany & Co.
In the early 1890s, tourmaline was reported in California—where Native Americans had, for centuries, given certain colors of the gemstone as funeral gifts.
At that point, China represented the biggest market for tourmaline. The Chinese Empress Dowager Cixi was particularly fond of pink tourmaline. She purchased large quantities of it from deposits in San Diego County.
In fact, the Chinese market was so critical to tourmaline, that when the Chinese government collapsed in 1912, it took tourmaline trade down with it.
Brazilian tourmaline discoveries in the 1980s and 90s reignited interest in this gemstone, because material mined in Paraíba displayed such striking neon greens, radiant blues, and vivid violets. This region has produced the world’s finest, most valuable specimens of tourmaline—including the world’s largest, weighing 191.87 carats.
While plenty of tourmaline is mined around the world, it’s rare to find fine gem-quality tourmaline in bright colors. This range of material means that the price of tourmaline can vary almost as much as the color.
How to Buy Tourmaline
No two tourmaline gemstones are exactly alike, which makes this a one-of-a-kind gift for any individual—especially someone celebrating an October birthday or an eighth wedding anniversary.
With a wide variety of colors, qualities, and sources available, there’s tourmaline jewelry to suit a range of styles and budgets. Like diamonds, tourmaline is evaluated by the criteria of color, clarity, cut, and carat weight.
Color
In general, darker toned tourmaline that appears black is priced lower than brightly colored material. Rubellite tourmaline, in shades of pink or red, is one of this gemstone’s most desirable colors.
Green and blue tourmaline are also popular, though the most striking shades of these colors come from Brazil’s exotic and rare Paraíba tourmaline. Prices can run $10,000 per carat, making this the most valuable variety of tourmaline.
Clarity
Inclusions are common in tourmaline, because liquid inclusions and crystals can get trapped during formation. It’s not uncommon for red or pink tourmaline to display visible inclusions, but inclusions can lower the value of other colors, depending on their visual impact.
Some tourmaline material, especially rubellite, undergoes heat treatment to improve color. Other tourmaline is clarity-enhanced to remove inclusions, which can significantly lower the value.
Cut
Because tourmaline forms in slender, columnar crystals, many finished gemstones have long, irregular shapes.
Tourmaline gemstones tend to absorb light differently down the length of a crystal, compared to light going across it. This optical property is called “pleochroism,” which means the gemstones appear different colors from different directions—so the cut is critical.
Carat Weight
Tourmaline can come in a range of sizes, but Paraíba tourmaline is rare in sizes larger than one carat. But with these stones, color is more highly valued than size, so a small, brightly colored gemstone is preferred over a large, dark one.
With such a wide range of tourmaline options available, there is a gemstone for everyone.
Find a jeweler near you to help choose the best tourmaline birthstone jewelry that fits your preferences.
Discover The Birthstones for Each Month
If you’re curious about the birthstones associated with each month, click the links below to learn more:
January Birthstone | February Birthstone | March Birthstone | April Birthstone | May Birthstone | June Birthstone | July Birthstone | August Birthstone | September Birthstone | October Birthstone | November Birthstone | December Birthstone
Last Updated on March 19, 2023 by JewelryNStyle
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