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Sleeping Beauty was, for over a century, probably the best known American Turquoise Mine. An Arizona mine –located near Globe– legendary for its pure blue colors Sleeping Beauty was, for most of the second half of the 20th century, the benchmark that all other blue turquoise was measured against. (Sleeping Beauty is also the color that the vast majority of fake “Turquoise” attempts to emulate.) Now that the Sleeping Beauty Mine has been closed genuine Sleeping Beauty has become a true collector’s item. (Ironically, while people now actively seek out “Sleeping Beauty” –and often don’t get genuine Sleeping Beauty– in the late 19^th century turquoise from the Sleeping Beauty mine was marketed as “Persian” because an exotic –non-American– source could fetch a premium. Now “Sleeping Beauty” has the name cachet “Persian” used to. Sadly, we conservatively estimate that at least 80% of the turquoise marketed as “Sleeping Beauty” is not genuine Sleeping Beauty. We only sell turquoise as Sleeping Beauty that actually came from the Sleeping Beauty mine.)

Located roughly halfway between Las Vegas and Reno, viagra buy help  the Royston Turquoise Mine –although never a major producer– is one of the better known Nevada mines. (Partly as it was one of the few active Southwestern turquoise mines that ever encouraged or allowed visitors.) Actively mined for over half a century the color and quality of Royston Turquoise varies tremendously. Royston naturally ranges from a classic light blue –with brown matrix– to a green with brown matrix. (Often a very attractive green, link Royston nevertheless rarely if ever displays the livid tropical greens of natural Carico.) The Royston turquoise mine is still active, but for the last few years we have seen relatively little new material from the area.

A small Nevada turquoise mine –in Lander County—Red Mountain turquoise has occasionally been marketed as a substitute for the incredibly rare Lander Blue. A matrix rich turquoise popular with custom jewelers Red Mountain is notable for having an occasionally “red” matrix.

There are several turquoise mines in the Pilot Mountain area of Nevada. Most of them have been active erratically since around the time of World War I. Pilot Mountain’s peak production period was probably sometime in the 1970s. Pilot Mountain is still being mined and the region produces a variety of interesting material –we have even seen some fine “ribbon turquoise” from Pilot Mountain– however, ambulance ed Pilot Mountain is no longer a volume producer and while definitely not as rare as some of the turquoise we carry, it is also not common.

Also known as “Nevada Persian” the Persian Blue Turquoise mine of Nevada is one of the many small turquoise mines in Lander County, order  Nevada. As the name suggests “Persian Blue” is a remarkably blue turquoise.

One of Nevada’s now “lost” turquoise mines –the location hasn’t been lost but the area has been swallowed up by a far more mechanized and profitable metal mining operation– #8 was first mined in the 1920s. It has now been nearly forty years since any new turquoise material came out of #8. Whatever old stock #8 turquoise now hits the market has been in private collections.

Located along the Arizona-New Mexico border the Morenci claim was intermittently worked for many decades. A light blue Turquoise primarily famous because of the contrasting “silvery colored” inclusions –usually pyrite &/or greyish Quartz– Morenci is particularly pretty when polished into irregular nuggets which allow the contrast of soft blue Turquoise and wintery grey matrix to show itself to best advantage.

Sadly, mind while there may still be some Turquoise in the ground in the Morenci area the likelihood of Morenci reopening as a Turquoise mining area in the future is slim to non-existent. The value of the copper claims in the area has increased to such an extant that industrial copper mining operations have taken over most of the region and chances are the heavy equipment being used is destroying whatever Turquoise remains in the ground. Since the 1980s there has been little to no intact turquoise recovered from the Morenci area. Morenci Turquoise is now a true collectible.

One of the many turquoise claims near Pilot Mountain, link  Nevada, sick the Montezuma Turquoise claim has been actively mined since before World War I. As is the case with most locations in Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico nicknamed “Montezuma” there is no evidence to suggest that there was ever any connection to the legendary ruler of Tenochtitlan. Montezuma has produced a wide range of colors and is popular with both jewelers and collectors.

The Lone Mountain Turquoise Mine is one of the many small Nevada turquoise mines in the general Tonopah area. Erratically active since the 1920s Lone Mountain has produced both a clean mainly blue turquoise and a very matrix rich turquoise. Personal preference is everything with turquoise, for sale but the spiderweb and matrix rich turquoise from Lone Mountain has been sought after by Southwestern jewelers for over 80 years now.

Unlike many of the other types of turquoise we carry Kingman has never been a “hat mine” –instead it has been a major copper producing area in north western Arizona for well over a hundred years. Kingman Turquoise –because of availability and quality– has been a favorite of Southwestern jeweler’s for decades. Although never as romanticized as some of the other Arizona turquoise mines we have always been favorably impressed by the quality, color and availability of turquoise from the Kingman area. If you want an American turquoise and don’t have your heart set on a specific shade of blue or green or a specific mine Kingman is always a good fallback choice.