Historical and Contemporary Turquoise Jewelry

Turquoise is made up of a number of chemicals, the primary ones being copper and aluminum phosphates. These phosphates are said to be in the hydrated form in that they contain water molecules that are chemically bonded to these compounds. The geological history of turquoise started about fort million years ago. Ground water or rain water percolated through rocks containing aluminum and copper phosphates. The solution transported the salts cavities in the rock, where the water evaporated away and the salts were left behind as precipitates. With time, and under heat and pressure due to geological forces, the salts underwent a process called petrification and formed the turquoise that we see today. Most turquoise in the world today is found in shades of blue. The blue color that has made this stone so popular for turquoise pendants and other jewelry is due to the significant copper content of the stone. A higher aluminum content renders the stone green, which although pretty, is less valuable than blue turquoise. Secondary compounds within the matrix of the stone can also change its physical appearance. Zinc for example, causes the stone to be yellow. The dark veins are the remains of the original bedrock where the turquoise was formed.

The earliest forms of turquoise jewelry were quite crude. Raw nuggets that were found in the ground were cleaned with water and then strung together to form necklaces, bracelets, and other ornaments. Many early attempts at jewelry making using this stone were unsuccessful because most natural turquoise is too soft to be handled, and the nuggets would fall apart during handling. Those that withstood the strains of jewelry making were fragile in that they absorbed moisture and gradually deteriorated. Jewelry designs using turquoise took a turn for the better after Native Americans discovered this stone near Santa Fe, New Mexico. While their initial attempts at jewelry making were also relatively crude, they soon mastered the art of first identifying the best stones to use, and then using them either as individual gems in their jewelry, or cutting them into thin laminae and using them in their famous sterling silver inlay jewelry. Turquoise jewelry today has come a long way since the early attempts. The formulation of the process of stabilization using epoxy or silica vapor has made it easier to work with turquoise. It has also become more cost effective to use turquoise in fashion jewelry, and not just fine jewelry. The designs today are more innovative than they used to be. Combinations such turquoise and cultured pearls in a pearl necklace, or red coral and turquoise in bracelets have been steadily gaining in popularity.