When researching the history of opal - from mining to miners to famous opals - it is sometimes necessary to read several books before you come up with the full story on any given subject.
Take for example the Empress of Australia Opal, which I talked about briefly a few days ago. Here’s that entry:
The “Empress of Australia” was mined in 1915, from the same patch on Phone Line where the “Pride of Australia” opal had been found by by Urwin and Brown. It was first called the “Kaleidoscope Queen”, then “Tartan Queen”, before being given its present name.
This stone originall measured 3 x 2 3/4 x 2 1/4 inches in the rough. It was accidentally dropped and broke into two pieces, from which two new opals were cut.
These new, almost matching stones each measuring 2 inches long and weighing 20 carats.
The daughter of Ernie Sherman designed a beautiful pendant for one half. The second piece, measuring 1 3/4 x 1 1/2 inches and weighing 50-60 carats, was mounted in a necklet of brilliants.
Well, what were the names of these new opals?
According to The World of Opals, by Alan W. Eckert, pg 132, the new stones were called the Black Prince, Flamingo, and Pride of Australia, with the largset one being called the Empress. They were all sold in a single parcel and purchased by a well-known buyer, Ernest G. Sherman — and given those names by his sister.