About Turquoise
I started my turquoise journey at this time last year. I wanted to work with it, but didn’t feel I knew enough about it to really go all out, so I did some digging. As my search for stones progressed, I started to recognize the different mine names and link them with an image in my head. To solidify that, I did some drawings of the different types, trying to capture what made each one unique. There must be thousands of turquoise mines worldwide, and I have barely scratched the surface here, but I tended to come across these names when shopping for Turquoise cabochons in the current market, so these are the ones I focused on.
Turquoise is typically found between 3,000-8,5000 feet above sea level in dry, dessert climates. Turquoise forms triclinic crystals - three unequal axes, none of which intersect at right angles. A cross-section of these crystals can be seen in many varieties of turquoise, bordered by a line of the surrounding matrix. The matrix refers to any remnant of the host rock within the turquoise, and can resemble veins, splotches, or spiderwebs. Turquoise crystals form in limonite or sandstone. Iron-rich limonite creates dark brown markings in turquoise, while sandstone creates tan markings.
Turquoise mines can be small family owned businesses or huge corporations. Sometimes one company owns several mines and will market their material under separate names because they are distinct from one another visually. Sometimes a huge company will mine in several places and call all their material one brand-name. There is great variety of material coming out of each mine, in color, matrix, porosity, and quality. The mine will rate their own material and price it accordingly. Historically speaking, turquoise that is bright or deep blue with no visible matrix has been the most valuable. Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and Persian varieties are famous for this. More recently, green turquoise has risen in demand and collectors prize stones that typify an excellent example of a specific mine or type of veining called “spiderwebbing”. American turquoise is seen as high quality, but has become scarce. Some well known American mines are now closed, mined out of turquoise permanently. As a result, turquoise from Tibet, China, Egypt, Iran and Khazakstan have become more prevalent here in the US. Of all the turquoise sold on the current market, 75-80% is Chinese. Asian turquoises have a character all their own and are no less fascinating than their American counterparts. Less information seems available about the origins of some Asian turquoises, and with that lack of information comes suspicion about dying and other treatments left undisclosed. Generally I’ll refer to the Asian turquoises by their region and American turquoise by the name of the mine.
Persian Turquoise
Persian Turquoise can be an intense robin’s egg blue with no visible matrix or color variation and is considered of the highest quality. Images of Empress Farah, the wife of the last Shah of Iran, show her famous turquoise tiara, set with flawless sky blue turquoise cabochons in gold with diamonds.
Persian turquoise can also come in deep ocean blues with islands of pyrite, sometimes surrounded by a haze of deeper blue or green. The pyrite has a distinct metallic flash. The matrix of Persian turquoise appears generally less prominent, but at the lower end of the quality spectrum can be chalky white. The oldest and highest producing turquoise mine in the world is located in Iran, and has been continuously mined for the past 7000 years.
Tibetan Turquoise
Known for having a lot of character, Tibetan turquoise differs wildly from one cabochon to the next. It’s prominent dark and granular matrix often appears to have orbs of intense blue green afloat. At it’s higher end, Tibetan Turquoise can be deep blue green with a crisply spiderwebbed matrix of dark umber rivaling some of the most expensive American mines. At it’s lower end, it will need stabilizing to take a polish. Believing it to be good luck, Tibetans have favored turquoise above any other gemstone. The majority of Tibetans possesses some turquoise, either set in rings, bracelets, beaded necklaces or sewn directly into clothing.
Egyptian Turquoise/Sinai Turquoise
Discovered in Egypt over 7500 years ago, Egyptian turquoise ranges in color from deep dark cornflower blue to green. The matrix is a reddish brown that can look almost blurred compared to the crisp lines of the Chinese and Tibetan varieties. Bedouins living within Egypt are said to have secret family turquoise mines they use to create family heirlooms. The turquoise mines on the Sinai Penninsula are known to have supplied malachite and turquoise to the pharaohs. Sinai is one of the world's most important historical sources of turquoise, so adored was it that most of the supply from the mines in the southwest of the region are believed to be used up.
Kingman Turquoise
The Kingman turquoise mine is located in Arizona and has been in production since prehistoric North Americans first discovered it thousands of years ago. Research shows that the Kingman mine supplied an ancient Mayan turquoise boom in 1000 AD, exporting turquoise south to ancient Mesoamerica. With many different color varieties and a distinct watery yellow brown or black matrix, Kingman turquoise can range from an intense sky blue to olive green. The Kingman mine in northwestern Arizona is the largest turquoise mine in the United States. Kingman blue has become a color standard in the industry.
Chinese Turquoise
Turquoise use in China dates back to 1700 BC. While never as popular as jade until recently, Chinese turquoise comprises some of the finest specimens of spiderweb turquoise ever sold in the United States. The best natural Chinese turquoise is often withheld from the American market, making it quite rare and valued by collectors. Lower quality turquoise from mines in China accounts for about 80% of the stone on the U.S. market today, but it is often enhanced in color and luster and therefore tends to fetch a lower price.
Chinese turquoise can vary wildly in color and matrix. The highest end of this material is deep intense blue with crisp black spiderwebbing. Colors can range from blue to dark green to yellow with tan, dark umber or black matrix. Sometimes Chinese Turquoise is called “Hubei” Turquoise, but this can be misleading because not all Chinese Turquoise is from Hubei.
Golden Hills Turquoise
Golden Hills turquoise is from the mountains of Khazakstan. This distinctive cool blue turquoise is relatively new to the jewelry community, only introduced in 2014. It can have an almost lavender appearance, and is relatively durable amongst the turquoise varieties. It’s matrix is dark and prominent, often umber or red brown. Golden Hill turquoise crystals sometimes have a radial gradient, fading from light blue or white in the center to a more intense cool sky blue towards the edges.
Gold Canyon
Gold Canyon Turquoise is comes from a series of mines at the border of the US and Mexico, in Arizona and New Mexico. It displays a beautiful turquoise-blue color and a distinctive golden matrix. The matrix patterns vary greatly, making each stone unique; the golden color of the veining is a beautiful variation from the typical matrix colors of gray, brown or black. The high grade turquoise from this mine is rare and is considered both esoteric and valuable.
Sonoran Gold Turquoise
Sonoran Gold Turquoise is found in Sonora Mexico. The high grade material is a beautiful two-tone which fades from baby blue to lime green and features yellow spiderweb matrix. This turquoise is soft, so most of it is stabilized. Once treated, it is extremely durable. This material is relatively new to the industry. Unlike most turquoise, Sonoran Gold is not mined in veins but rather as individual nuggets typically found in clay deposits.
Damele Turquoise
The Damele is a small mine outside of Austin, Nevada producing a uniquely durable and famously yellow to lime green turquoise. The Damele mine produces a wide range of colorful material in yellows, golds, greens and blue-grays, often with very fine, tight spiderwebbing. This mine produces a very small amount of material currently, so much of the Damele turquoise sold presently is cut from older rough, mined decades ago.
