--Previous Message-- : I was amazed to see a report in the Australian : press regarding an opal named the Queen : Alexandra Black Opal!! : http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/114751529?searchTerm=ruby%20AND%20%22Queen%20Alexandra%22&searchLimits=exactPhrase=Queen+Alexandra : |||anyWords|||notWords|||requestHandler|||dateFrom|||dateTo|||l-advcategory=Article|||sortby : There are 2 other such reports. : : The name astounded me as, before this time : (1908) it was widely reported that Queen : Alexandra considered opals unlucky and, in : some reports, it was said that Edward VII : rejected the offer of the so called Imperial : Opal for the Crown Regalia because of Queen : Alexandra's feelings/beliefs. (However, it : is not yet clear to me if Edward VII : accepted that opal as a personal gift -as : opposed to a gem for use in the Crown : Regalia as originally proposed) : : Does anyone know anything else about the so : called Alexandra Opal? I have not found : anything else in the Australian press so : far. So far, I have not found any suggestion : that it was given to Queen Alexandra, but : the fact it was named after her is : intriguing, given her known antipathy to the : gemstone. :