Over the years, due to its popularity, the price paid for Turquoise keeps going higher and higher and in many cases the availability is also becoming less and less as more mining areas are depleted and have been closed. Turquoise is normally divided into four classes, and priced accordingly.
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Natural - This comes directly from the mine. It is cut shaped and polished and set into jewelry. It has no man made treatment or additives other than a polishing compound that adds to its luster. As seen to the right, a raw piece of Sleeping Beauty Turquoise from Arizona, can be beautiful with very little polishing. Most stones in this state are very close to gem quality. The coloration of natural Turquoise can darken as oils from the skin work its way into the stone over the years, especially of not properly cleaned.Stabilized – This is a natural turquoise usually in nugget form, but does not hold a luster. It is submerged into a stabilizing compound and dried, cut and prepared for jewelry. The turquoise has not been altered. The pores of the stone have been filled with a clear resin that makes the stone usable. This process allows for diversity of shapes and possibilities in jewelry making. Color Stabilized stones are considered altered and sometimes color has been added in this process. This in not necessarily bad, but it has less value than a piece that is naturally colored. Stabilized Turquoise usually does not change color with wear.
Treated - This form of color enhancement has been used for thousands of years. It is done as discussed earlier by submerging Turquoise stones into animal fat or vegetable oil and later air dried. Normally the color will not last very long. A new variety on the market, called "Motaska" and "Majave" Stone is much more stable and retains its color as well as being infused with gold, silver and copper.
Fake and Synthetic – Ceramics, bone, celluloid and plastic are used to imitate turquoise. Synthetic turquoise has a very natural matrix that is produced by placing stones in the synthetic “batter” .
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In addition to these four classes , we also have some natural gemstones that can be colored to look like Turquoise. The best known is Howlite, but some other common Turquoise colored gemstones are Magnesite and Ivoryite. Howlite, especially, is known for being colored in many colors other than Turquoise..
This design uses turquoise colored Magnesite barrels in line with two sizes of Carnelian round and flat beads with Sardonyx barrels. The set is completed with silver French Hook earrings with a dangle of Carnelian, Sardonyx and stabilized Turquoise flats.
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Magnesite is a compound that substitutes iron for magnesium with a complete solution series with siderite. Dolomite is almost indistinguishable from magnesite. Magnesite is normally stablized and color shot except for that which is left white or ivory in color as a substitute for Ivory. Many vendors sell Magnesite as stabilized Turquoise. Also the famous Wild Horse Turquoise sold throughout the Southwest is predominately Magnesite dug from the same mines as Turquoise and many times has Turquoise as well as other minerals mixed through it to make for the beautiful designs.
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Stabilized turquoise - Turquoise that is soft or normally referred to as "chalk" Turquoise is infused with a clear epoxy resin. This resin, under pressure, is absorbed into the rock, which permanently hardens the rock and deepens the color. Unlike the collectible natural tTrquoise which deepens in color over time by gradually absorbing oils from the skin as it is worn, the colors in stabilized Turquoise are permanent. Most of the Turquoise on the market today is stabilized and should not cost as much as natural Turquoise. Stabilized turquoise can be very beautiful, and is a good buy. Because of it's hardness and consistant color, stabilized Turquoise wears much better in Jewelry.
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Sardonyx is a variant of Onyx or Agate in which the colored bands are Sard in shades of red rather than black. Pure black Onyx, which is truely a died black Agate, is more common and perhaps the most famous variety, but not as common as natural Onyx with its banded colors of browns, whites and black..
Carnelian (also spelled cornelian) is a reddish-brown mineral which is commonly used as a semi-precious gemstone. Similar to Carnelian is Sard, which is generally harder and darker. The difference between the two is not rigidly defined, and thus the two names are often used interchangeably. Both Carnelian and Sard are varieties of the silica mineral called Chalcedony and are colored red by impurities of iron oxide. The color can vary greatly, ranging from pale orange to an intense almost-black coloration.
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