MILLION-pound gemstones hewn from the mines of Australia will go on show in Worcester this week.

W H Peplow jewellers in the High Street is hosting an exhibition of exotic black opals - usually only found Down Under - until Saturday.

Opal expert John Wheeler, who mines the precious stones at Lightning Ridge in New South Wales, has made the trip to Britain especially to show off his haul.

All of the rare opals, which are a variety of shapes and sizes and range in price from £40 to £1.8m are for sale - if you're blessed with pockets that are as deep as the mines they come from.

Mr Wheeler will be on hand throughout to answer questions, with a jewellery designer present in the store on Friday and Saturday to give advice on items to put the stones into.

The store has also brought in special security measures and a security guard to take care of the precious collection.

It is the third time the jeweller has held the exhibition, with similar events in 2000 and 2002 going down a treat with customers.

Manager Joanne Bourne said: "There are lots of different-sized opals, different colours and qualities - you never get two opals the same so it's a real eye-opener to see them like this.

"They are very interesting to look at and if someone wants to buy one for £65,000 or whatever, we'd be quite happy!"

Following a preview show for invited guests, the public exhibition runs during store hours, from 9.30am to 5pm.

opal factfile

l Opals are made up of silicon oxide (SiO2) plus varying amounts of water.

l Australia mines 95 per cent of the world's opals, producing stones worth about £100m every year.

l Artificial opals produced in the laboratory are larger, with brighter colours, but their patterns are less intricate.

l Opals are thought to have been mined for 4,000 years, according to archaeological finds in Kenya.