Does turquoise fluoresce?

Under longwave ultraviolet light, turquoise may occasionally fluoresce green, yellow or bright blue; it is inert under shortwave ultraviolet and X-rays. Turquoise is infusible in all but heated hydrochloric acid. Its streak is a pale bluish white and its fracture is conchoidal, leaving a waxy lustre.

Can turquoise be light green?

Turquoise is a semi-transparent to opaque stone that ranges in color from whitish blue to deep dark blue, and from deep dark green to a yellowish green.

How can you tell if its real turquoise?

Turquoise is naturally a soft stone, but howlite (the turquoise imitation), is even softer. This means that if you scratch your stone and it scratches easily, you most likely have a piece of howlite. But if it's very difficult to scratch your stone, you've got genuine turquoise!

Can turquoise turn black?

Turquoise is a compound that includes metals such as aluminum, copper or iron. Water and oil can cause some of these metals to oxidize, or in other words rust. As a result of oxidation, the stones can actually change color. Blue turquoise that contains copper can change from a light blue to a dark green.

Can turquoise be light blue?

Turquoise can be semitranslucent to opaque, with a color that usually ranges from light to medium blue or greenish blue. It's often mottled and sometimes has dark splotches.

Watch This Before You Buy Turquoise - Know What You're Buying

What is the rarest color turquoise?

Lander Blue Spiderweb Turquoise is some of the rarest Turquoise on earth and in high demand, Buyers must beware of impersonators, the highest grade of Chinese Spiderweb Turquoise is often sold as Lander Blue Turquoise, it takes an experienced professional to detect true Lander Blue Turquoise.

How can you tell if turquoise is stabilized or natural?

After treatment, stabilized turquoise is harder and is unlikely to break or crack. The stone is no longer porous, so it doesn't absorb liquids or oils and the color is "locked" - unlike natural turquoise where the color can change, or deepen, over time. The cheapest forms of "turquoise" are block and imitation.

What happens if you get turquoise wet?

Can you shower with a turquoise jewel? As mentioned before, water and humidity are not recommended. This mineral from dry and arid environments will absorb liquids and chemical products (water, soap, cream, ...) and the colour will be altered.

What can damage turquoise?

Turquoise is generally stable to light, but high heat can cause discoloration and surface damage. It dissolves slowly in hydrochloric acid, and it can be discolored by chemicals, cosmetics, and even skin oils or perspiration.

Does water harm turquoise?

Letting water sit on the turquoise can harm the gem, so it's vital to get it dry after cleaning.

Is turquoise worth any money?

Turquoise prices normally range from $1 to $10 per carat but can reach $1000 per carat for the best quality stones. Real turquoise of the top quality costs even more than gold, so it is definitely worth the money.

Is turquoise becoming rare?

With depleting mines, turquoise, the most sacred stone to the Navajo, has become increasingly rare. A sky-blue colored stone with a gray and gold spiderweb matrix sits melded into an intricate silver ring with engraved feathers along the sides.

What is light blue turquoise called?

Dry Creek Turquoise: One of the lightest blue turquoise's available - this stone has just a tiny trace of pigment in it, graced with beautiful light brown, golden brown, or orange matrix. Fox Turquoise: At one time, the Fox turquoise mine was the largest producer of Turquoise in Nevada - and it's still in production.

Does turquoise have black veins?

One of the most unique characteristics of turquoise is the presence of the "matrix" in the stone. The matrix is formed by the thin veins of the host stone. These veins interweave throughout the stone, creating a unique pattern which contrasts with the blues, greens, earthy browns, rust, and black coloration.

What is chalk turquoise?

Chalk turquoise is a form of natural turquoise that has a white chalk-like consistency. It has the same chemical composition as turquoise, only without the copper (it's the copper that causes the blue turquoise color).

How do you clean discolored turquoise?

Place a sheet of aluminum foil in a bowl. Then mix one tablespoon of baking soda into a quart of hot water. After this, place your Turquoise jewelry for half an hour in the bowl. Now take out your sterling silver rings with stones and buff them gently, with a dry cloth.

Should I oil turquoise?

Chemicals will damage the stone's finish and may change its color. Skin oils may also negatively affect turquoise. Avoid cleaning the gem with commercial jewelry cleaning products and prevent the stone from entering direct sunlight because it can cause turquoise to discolor.

Can you put oil on turquoise?

Turquoise Treated with Fat, Oil and Wax

The most effective of the fats/oils is whale oil, which has a high melting point. However, from our experience fat/oil rubs off easily and disappears over time. Wax is another early form of turquoise treatment.

What is a Sleeping beauty turquoise?

Considered as one of the most important American Mine turquoise in the world, the Sleeping Beauty turquoise is located in Globe, AZ, named after the mountain range where it is located. From a distance, it is said to resemble a sleeping woman with her arms crossed, hence the name.

Why is Sleeping Beauty turquoise so expensive?

In 2012, the Sleeping Beauty mine closed and sent prices skyrocketing (not because the mine was spent, but because the copper mine that owned the mining concession sold the mine, and its new owner decided not to pursue the turquoise mining operation, according to Foutz). Buyers used to pay $10 per ct.

What is spiderweb turquoise?

Spiderweb Turquoise Jewelry is Jewelry that is made with rare Turquoise that has matrix that is in the form of spiderweb's. Most American Turquoise that has spiderwebing comes from Nevada, however, it is found in Arizona and Colorado Turquoise as well.

What is the black in turquoise?

Some turquoise contains inclusions of its host rock (known as matrix) that appear as black or brown spider-webbing or patches within the material. Many cutters try to produce stones that exclude the matrix, but sometimes it is so uniformly or finely distributed through the stone that it cannot be avoided.

Is howlite a turquoise?

Howlite is a white stone that has black mineral veins that are similar to that of turquoise. Therefore, when the stone is dyed it is identical to turquoise. The first red flag when it comes to dyed turquoise (or any imitation turquoise) is the price.