Opal—Cupid’s Stone

In the classical era, humans believed that opals were pieces of rainbows that had fallen to the ground. They also dubbed this exquisite iridescent gem Cupid’s stone because they felt it looked like the love god’s skin. The Arabs believed opals fell from heaven in bright flashes of lightning, thus gaining their amazing fire and color play. The Romans saw opals as symbols of purity and optimism. They believed this stone could protect people from diseases. The Roman name for opal is so beautiful and evocative—cupid paedros, meaning “a child as beautiful as love.”

Saint Albert the Great was one of the most learned men of the thirteenth century, a student of the natural sciences as well as theology, literature, and languages. He fancied mineralogy and waxed on about opal: “The porphanus is a stone which is in the crown of the Roman Emperor, and none like it has ever been seen; for this very reason it is called porphanus. It is of a subtle vinous tinge, and its hue is as though pure white snow flashed and sparkled with the color of bright, ruddy wine and was overcome by this radiance. It is translucent stone, and there is a tradition that, formerly, it shone in the nighttime, but now, in our age, it does not sparkle in the dark, it is said to guard the regal honor.”  

Opals had many superstitions attached to them. There was the belief that an opal wrapped in a bay-laurel leaf could cure any eye disease and combat weak hearts and infection. In the Middle Ages, opal was called ophthalmios, or “eye stone.” The great Scandinavian epic the Edda contained verses about a stone forged by the smithy of the gods to form the eye of children, doubtless a reference to opal. In olden days, it was thought that an opal would change color according to the mood and health of the owner, going dull and colorless when the owner died. Blond women favored opals because they believed they could keep their hair light in color. (I trust they were not using black or dark blue opals!)

It was ever believed that an opal could render the wearer invisible, making this the patron stone of thieves. Black opal has always had top ranking among opals, being the rarest and most dramatic type. One legend told that if a love relationship was consummated with only one party wearing black opal, the gem would soak up the passion and store it in its glow.