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b"We hope you enjoy this preview of an episode from our back catalog available to our premium subscribers. Tonight, we\\u2019ll read \\u201cThe Opal\\u201d, a fairy tale about how the gemstone was formed. To unlock full episodes and ad-free listening of this series and more, please go to\\xa0snoozecast.com/plus.\\n\\nDepending on the conditions in which it formed, precious opal may be iridescent with white, black, or nearly any color of the visual spectrum as a background color. Black opal is considered to be the rarest, whereas white, gray, and green are the most common.\\xa0\\n\\nOpal was rare and very valuable in antiquity. In Europe, it was a gem prized by royalty. Until the opening of vast deposits in Australia in the 19th century the only known source was beyond the Roman frontier in Slovakia.\\n\\nFollowing the publication of Sir Walter Scott's Anne of Geierstein in 1829, opal acquired a less auspicious reputation. Due to the popularity of Scott's novel, people began to associate opals with bad luck.\\xa0\\n\\nOpal was also said to grant invisibility- if wrapped in a fresh bay leaf and held in the hand- and thus it was considered the gemstone of thieves.\\n\\n\\u2014 read by 'V' \\u2014\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices"