Naked classical torso opal carving

This is an absolute one of a kind Blue Green BLACK OPAL miniature sculpture figurine in the classical Greek/Roman style. 

Sometimes when I cut opal it is not obvious what a piece of rough opal from the mines at Lightning Ridge in Australia will turn into. I personally prefer freeform shapes to maximise the opal play of colors as opposed to standard calibrated rounds and ovals unless it is quite obvious that this is the best outcome. 

This piece of black opal was nothing extraordinary except part of the green blue opal colors were embedded in grey opal potch. As I started to grind away on the polishing wheels some black opal started to appear. At this point I stopped and took up the carving drill bits and followed the color drilling away the grey opal potch with fine drill bits. 

Unshore at first what it would become, I stopped and put it aside for a few days before returning. When I reappraised the opal I began to see from the back a possible dark skeletal outline of a torso. As I continued carving with very tiny drill bits I could see as I started rolling the opal rough over that I had a breast line and as this opal is also black and dark crystal that I could see through part of the opal and the skeletal structure was quite pronounced to me. 

With a naked torso quite a possibility I continued to remove potch, sand and yes opal to create this absolutely one of a kind unique one off miniature sculpture. Indeed there are several very small dots of sand embedded in the opal. I have left these there as to remove them would have run the risk of losing the shape of the torso. The same goes with the grey potch which I left on the bottom right hip (left side in photograph) as I would have lost the torso shape if I continued. 

On the back of the torso there are a couple of very thin drill marks which to me look like chisel marks a sculptor would carve so I decided to them rather than smooth these out. The sculptor's prerogative. 

The torso was not finished off in one go but rather left and studied and re examined week after week sometimes doing something many times just assessing what could and possibly could not be done. 

One thing I have learnt over many a year carving opal is that there is a point of no return when something becomes nothing. So I have stopped just before that point and I hope you like my Blue Green Black Opal miniature sculpture in the Greek/Roman style. 

The photographs show a dark outline in the centre and that you can see through the remainder. However as you change the angles and the background gets darker so too does the opal. The predominant color is blue and purple and then green particularly around the upper torso. 

Specifications

Overall maximum dimensions are: 

Weight: 4.6ct or 0.92gms 

Length: 18.35mm Width: 9.9mm 

Thickness:5.45mm at the breast line.

This could be displayed as a specimen or even possibly as a pendant with the torso sitting on a gold plinth with the plinth and torso sitting in a gold open frame from which claws could be positioned to hold the torso in place.