The Yowah Moon opal, which is one of the rarest types of precious opals found in Australia, has recently been unveiled at Geoscience Australia with funding assistance from the National Cultural Heritage Account.
The Yowah Moon opal, which is one of the rarest types of precious opals found in Australia, has recently been unveiled at Geoscience Australia with funding assistance from the National Cultural Heritage Account. 'Yowah Nuts' as they are colloquially known, were first found at Yowah, Southwest Queensland, and are unique to the region. They are named so due to their rounded shape with a core of precious opal surrounded by a shell of dark, red-brown ironstone.
Exceptional for its rarity, beauty, quality, size and aesthetic properties, the Yowah Moon was discovered in 2020 by a First Nations miner who has been at Yowah since his father started mining Brandy Gully in the 1970s. Brandy Gully was first mined in the early 1900s and holds significance in Yowah opal mining history.
The Yowah Moon opal is regarded as one of the largest known well-formed 'Yowah Nuts' in existence, and has a rare and more complete 'avocado' type shape than many other specimens found.
As a unique natural wonder, the Yowah Moon opal will form a spectacular centrepiece of The National Mineral and Fossil Collection. It is now on public display as part of The Rocks that Shape Australia exhibition at Geoscience Australia in Canberra.
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