Green Turquoise Generally speaking, turquoise with a green to greenish blue color is less desirable than turquoise with a pure blue hue, but it depends on personal preference. There are some contemporary designers who actively seek avocado and lime green turquoise.
Turquoise can be semitranslucent to opaque, with a color that usually ranges from light to medium blue or greenish blue. It might also have veins of matrix running through it matrix is a remnant of its surrounding rock. The material known as spiderweb turquoise contains fine seams of matrix that form attractive web-like patterns. The most valuable turquoise is an even medium blue, with no matrix and the ability to take a good polish.
One-of-a-Kind Jewelry. The Journey. Jewelry Care Guide. Giving Back. Get In Touch. In-Store Locations. Custom Orders. Shipping is free in the US and we ship internationally! You can see how similar the webbing and matrix look. Firstly, lets get a grasp on how this mineral forms. The main element that causes the blue color is Copper, so we need some of that. Next up is a mixture of water, aluminium and phosphorus.
Once all of those ingredients are together in the same place at the same time the formation of Turquoise can occur. The different amounts of these elements can change the properties of Turquoise dramatically. It is very rare to find Turquoise with a perfectly uniform and evenly distributed color. The old stones coming from Persia certainly had even color but that is why they are worth thousands of dollars.
Stones that are very uniform in color are more than likely dyed. The matrix is the most obvious inclusion in Turquoise. So where does it come from? It is the left over remains from the host rock in which the Turquoise grew. The webbing can be black, brown, yellow or a host of other colors.
Over long periods of time this matrix erodes away. When this happens the matrix and the Turquoise are at different heights and this creates a type of over growth. This is the first physical observation you can make. If you have a rough natural piece, use your finger nail to rub along the surface of the stone. If your nail gets caught on where the Turquoise meets the webbing, then this is a good indication of natural Turquoise.
The next observation you can make is about the hardness of the mineral. Howlite has a hardness of about 3. While this is not an easy way to tell the difference, if your stones scratch easily then they are more than likely dyed Howlite. If your Turquoise is dyed this test may damage the stone.
It's deep blue and green hues are known for their eye catching abilities, and depending on locality, some nuggets can include other complimentary minerals that make the mineral even more rare, valuable, and coveted. However, with such a popular mineral comes imitation. Turquoise is one of the most commonly faked or imitated minerals on the market, with a majority of it either being dyed howlite or straight up plastic!
Thankfully, there are certain tests or factors to look for when determining if your turquoise is real, dyed, or entirely lab created, which we have outlined for you below! To begin, here's some basic mineral facts about turquoise:. Stabilized Turquoise: Before we go into imitation and enhanced turquoise, we must establish what stabilized turquoise is and how it is different from the fake stuff.
When it comes to jewelry-grade turquoise, most of it has been stabilized with epoxy. This stabilization is necessary to make low grade quality turquoise the majority of turquoise mined hard enough to be shaped and polished. Turquoise is known to be a relatively soft and porous stone, which means it is susceptible to environmental factors such as heat and humidity which can either change the color of the stone or its density.
The epoxy fills the voids and porous areas of the turquoise in order to enhance the stones density and preserve its color. Only the highest grade turquoise, such as the material from the Blue Moon mine, is able to be shaped and polished without stabilization due to its density and lack of porosity. Now that we have established what stabilized jewelry grade turquoise is, let's move on to the fake stuff yuck!
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