The future is very bright for Ethiopian opals. They are becoming much more visible in the gem and jewelry market, and the gem-buying public is becoming aware of them. All of this has occurred without a major mining company or jewelry brand spending millions of dollars to promote them. They occur in a variety of translucent to transparent base colors with vivid play-of-color in a variety of patterns. They currently sell for very reasonable prices when compared to similar-appearance material from Australia. Significant amounts of Ethiopian opal are being produced and the country might become the first important challenger to Australian opal, which has dominated the world opal market for over 100 years.