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 Turquoise is one of the most beautiful
semi-precious stones in all the world. Indeed, it
has been said that no other opaque stone is more beautiful and popular!
The archeological record reveals that
turquoise has long been cherished, with the
earliest documented use going back to 6000
B.C. Egypt.
Mother
nature was quite democratic in her
allocation of this precious stone.
Although turquoise deposits are quite rare,
quality turquoise is found in isolated
locations on virtually every continent.
In North American, reserves of the highest
quality of turquoise can be found in several
southwest states, especially Arizona,
Nevada, and New Mexico. In South
America, Chile is home to some deposits of
respectable quality.
The Eurasia continent is where turquoise was
first mined and given its current name, a
misnomer based on the false belief that this
gem came from Turkey. Turquoise is also
being mined in Egypt (in minute quantities) and in Australia.
Our Mission:
Turquoise Education
 This educational site provides information
about turquoise and its use in jewelry.
In many ways, this site is a tribute to
turquoise and the many traditions
surrounding its uses in cultures ranging
from Native American tribes to the people of
Tibet.
The site owners work in the jewelry
business, but this site is noncommercial.
We sell nothing from it. The site was
started to provide our own customers with
information about turquoise. We felt that
this was necessary because the turquoise on
the market today comes in many forms and
variations. Furthermore, there are
many fake turquoise products out there to
which an unwitting customer could fall
victim. We are trying to prevent that
from happening!
New Articles
We have just added an article on Israeli
Eilat Stone, a close cousin to
turquoise. We have also added an
article on "African Turquoise" to our
Imposters section. This is a beautiful
stone, but is not a real form of turquoise.
 A Note To Turquoise Merchants
If you deal in turquoise, we encourage you
to let your customers know about this site
by linking to us or perhaps by using your
company's newsletter to let customers know
about us. By calling your customers'
attention to this site, you will be giving
them valuable information and bolstering
your own credibility.
 Contribute An Article!
If you are a gemologist, lapidary
specialist, turquoise dealer, or jewelry maker with experience or
special expertise on turquoise, consider
contributing an article to this site. You
will be fully credited and given a link to
your own website. We would like to
make this site's further development a
community affair.
Navigation
If you need to know more about a specific
topic, click on that topic in the column to
the right. If you want to know more
about turquoise in general, simply move down
through the entire list of topics to the
right.
In 30 minutes or less you will be a
turquoise expert.
Credits
The photo of
the beautiful turquoise necklace shown above
is courtesy of
Southwest Gems, a leading specialist in
turquoise jewelry.
The
incredibly beautiful carved eagle pendant
photo is courtesy of
Silverhawk's Creations.
The
exquisite heart-shaped prayer box photo is compliments
of
Beads of Bali.
The
stunning Buckle comes from
Sacred Bear.
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