Being in the gemstone business for nearly three decades sounds like a long time, but I continue learning new and fascinating things daily. I’ve grown to appreciate the various shades of green turquoise stones greatly. There is a complexity in the beauty of all the shades, from light to dark green turquoise. Sometimes you can find turquoise with all shades of green and sky blue in one stone. Sonoran Gold is the most beautiful turquoise with aqua blues and lime green to dark green mixed with golden matrix, but I’ll get into that later.
Development of natural turquoise color
To further understand the natural beauty and different shades of turquoise, you need to delve deeper to know how the various colors are formed by mother nature herself. Turquoise is typically found in the Midwest of the US due to its arid climate. The cavities and fractures left behind by volcanic activity created the perfect turquoise landscape. Mineral-rich water seeps into rocky crevices in our great planet. Over time the water starts rust (oxidization) to occur. With the help of the scorching sun, dehydration occurs, leaving behind the minerals as turquoise: the more copper minerals, the more shades of blue in the stone. The more iron minerals will cause shadows from light green to dark green turquoise. Aluminum blends light to darker blues and various shades of green mixed throughout the stone. This chemical reaction can cause a kaleidoscope of beautiful blues and greens we’ve all come to love in turquoise. These variations have helped turquoise become a favorite amongst designers.
It’s hard to believe this beautiful gemstone we’ve all grown to love is a by-product left behind by copper, silver, and gold mining. Most turquoise mines in Arizona are open-pit copper mines. In the early days, copper miners would alert the locals if they hit rich deposits of turquoise during their workday.
Turquoise mines
One of America’s oldest and highest turquoise-producing mines is the Kingman Mine, located in the Acerbate Mountains roughly 15 miles northwest of Kingman, AZ. Some of the highest prized turquoise comes from the Sleeping Beauty mine in Globe, AZ. Sleeping Beauty Turquoise is often compared to the world-renowned Persian Turquoise from several mines in modern-day Iran. So naturally, Persian Turquoise is also called Iranian Turquoise these days.
I’ve been rambling on about different mines, but I need to get back on topic; everyone seems to have their favorite, but “mine” is the Sonoran Gold Turquoise. See how I threw in the word MINE being used in a different meaning? LOL #wordplay: Sonoran Gold Turquoise is my favorite because it dazzles with its aqua blues mixed with lime to dark green and golden veining running throughout. This turquoise is extracted from mines near Nogales, AZ, and Nogales, Mexico, which is in the state of Senora, Mexico.
In closing
When I look at a highly polished piece of Sonoran Gold, it allows me to imagine flying over the tropics with its stunning blue waters and islands in many shades of green. When you research the Sonoran Gold Turquoise Mines, there is a lot of data. It appears the largest of these mines is the Cactus mine, but there is so much information I will let you check it out on your own. Enjoy your research.