What is turquoise?

Turquoise is a beautiful blue-green gemstone found throughout the world. It has been actively mined and used for jewelry since at least 3,000 BCE. Because turquoise is comprised at least in part of copper, it is often found in the vicinity of copper mines and copper deposits. Some of the best quality turquoise has been mined in Iran since the very earliest of times. Here is a sample of uncut turquoise as found in Arizona.

In the United States, turquoise is most commonly found in the southwest, although deposits have been found in other states including Virginia. Most of the known turquoise deposits in the west have been depleted and only a few active mines remain.

American turquoise is generally considered to be of a lesser quality than much of the turquoise found in Iran and other parts of the world (and priced accordingly). In fact, most American turquoise is considered "low grade" and is commonly referred to as "chalk turquoise." Almost all of the turquoise jewelry sold in the American southwest, is made from chalk turquoise (or some form of imitation turquoise; see below). Even though most American deposits are poor grade turquoise, some high grade deposits are still being found in Nevada.

Turquoise is a relatively soft gemstone. On the Mohs scale, it rates only a 5-6, only slightly harder than ordinary window glass and substantially less than quartz (7) or diamonds (10). In part due to its softness, and in part due to its chemical composition, turquoise is very susceptible to damage. It is common for the turquoise miner/producer to stabilize the turquoise by high pressure injection of epoxy or polystyrene to improve its durability. Although not commonly done outside of the American southwest, most American turquoise is also "backed" meaning that an epoxy steel backing has been applied to the turquoise to help prevent it from cracking. Light oiling or waxing of the turquoise is also common to improve its luster, although purists may object to any kind of treatment. Neither stabilization or backing decrease the value of turquoise, but both do improve its durability and practicality in fine jewelry. Here is an example of stabilized, backed American turquoise set in sterling silver in a delicate, organically themed piece from my collection.

In contrast to the above, when I designed and made these post backed sterling silver earrings, I wanted a less elegant and less refined look to the pieces, so I used turquoise that had not been stabilized, oiled or waxed and you can actually see the natural fissures in the gemstones.

As with anything of value that is subject to scarcity, there are those who will try to make an inexpensive product look like something that is rare and expensive, and sell it to an unsuspecting buyer. That is also true of turquoise. Among the many turquoise imitations passed off as true turquoise, are dyed magnesite, howlite, chalcedony and even common marble. More recently, technology has allowed the creation of many kinds of imitation turquoise, including Viennese turquoise and Gilson turquoise. Without extensive experience, education and testing tools, most of us are not able to distinguish most of these imitation products from the genuine product and sometimes even the experts are fooled. To try to protect myself from inadvertently buying imitation products, I always try to buy from known, established sources. At least once each year, I travel to the mining districts in Nevada and purchase gemstones directly from the sources. (Sadly, bead shows and some "household name" auction and online sites, have the largest percentage of purveyors of undisclosed, imitation gemstones.)

Below is a sample of imitation turquoise (dyed howlite), before cutting and polishing. As you can see, it has the coloration and veining that you would expect from genuine turquoise. Only a professional could tell the difference.

As with most natural products including gemstones, care must be taken to protect and preserve the beauty of the gemstones. Perfume, cosmetics, skin oils, commercial cleaning fluids, sunscreen and hair spray will all damage turquoise. Additionally, prolonged exposure to the sun will dehydrate the turquoise and cause discoloration. "Sonic" cleaners should not be used to clean any gemstone that is subject to fracture.

What is sterling silver?

Pure silver, that brilliantly shiny metal, has been used by mankind for thousands of years to make body ornaments and mirrors. However, pure silver is is too soft to use to make most functional objects, so other metals are added to make pure silver stronger. Sterling silver is the result of adding other metals to pure silver to achieve an alloy commonly known as sterling silver. To be "sterling" silver, the alloy must contain 92.5% pure silver, also commonly written as .925 silver. Most commonly, copper is added to pure silver,but other metals that can be added include germanium, zinc and platinum.

Here are examples of pure silver (.999%) silver bars.

It is believed that sterling silver was first developed in the current area of Germany, in the 12th century. During the 13th century in UK, some of the earliest "standards" were set establishing the minimum silver content for sterling silver at 91.5-92.5% silver. In colonial America, sterling silver was used as coinage. In addition, silversmiths made practical products with sterling silver, like tea sets and flatware. Because there was little regulation of the industry, buyers relied upon the reputation of the seller to provide the buyer with an honest 92.5% silver product, and the "hallmark" of the seller, with his/her reputation and integrity standing behind it. Of course, one of colonial America's most famous silversmiths was Paul Revere.

Today, sterling silver is still used in the fabrication of flatware, ornamental housewares and commonly, jewelry.

Sterling silver necklace, Autumn Leaves, from my collection.


If you have owned sterling silver, you know that it tarnishes. Pure silver does not chemically react to oxygen or water, but does react to atmospheric pollution, sulfur compounds and ozone. By adding alloys, the tendency of silver to tarnish increases and depending on one's tastes, may require frequently cleaning and polishing. Keeping sterling silver away from air pollution and airborne chemical compounds, is one of the easiest ways to help avoid having it tarnish. There are also products that can be bought that help inhibit tarnish including a relatively new product offered by 3M commonly called anti-tarnish strips. By keeping sterling silver (including jewelry) in a container that protects it from atmospheric pollution (even a closed jewelry box helps; I use small jewelry-sized plastic baggies) along with anti tarnish strips, one can significantly minimize tarnish that might develop. Here is a picture of the 3M anti tarnish strip (1" squares and 1" x 6" strips).

The anti tarnish strips that I include with my sales, are bought on Amazon, but I'm sure there are other places where you can purchase them. A cautionary note: 100 of the small (1" square pieces) shown in the photo, is about 1/2" thick and weighs less than an ounce. Don't pay an online seller a large "shipping" fee to stick 100 squares into a first class envelope with $.44 postage on it!


Argentium (a trade name) is a relatively new form of sterling silver wherein pure silver is alloyed with germanium. The Argentium marketing suggests that because germanium is used as the hardening alloy, and not copper, the Argentium sterling silver is less susceptible to tarnishing. Currently, the wholesale price of Argentium is about 20% higher than sterling silver, even though the silver content of Argentium is still 92.5%. In addition to Argentium, other manufacturers are developing and marketing proprietary alloys of sterling silver, said to inhibit tarnish and firescale (the red or purple stain that sometimes appears on sterling silver). I suspect that with new entrants into the proprietary alloy market, that the price differential between sterling silver and the proprietary alloys will drop.

Welcome to my new blog!

Welcome to my new blog! Although there are tens of thousands of sources of information on the internet for art, jewelry and jewelry lovers, few sites are devoted to all three and I want to try to fill that need as well as share my love for art and what goes into my "Wearable Art" designs. I hope to provide timely, informative blog posts, and hope that you the readers will share your thoughts and contributions.

If you have questions or comments about the blog or my articles, please join the discussion! Because there is enough negativity, drama and theatrics already in the world, I don't intend to add to it and intend to moderate the comments so that this blog is (hopefully) free of negativity, drama and theatrics, but I love jewelry and would like to have other jewelry lovers share their experiences.

Again, Welcome and thank you for reading!

Qian Fang
Qian Fang Art Jewelry
"Wearable Art"
www.etsy.com/shop/qianfangartjewelry