Marcia Kertel created this Kokopeilli necklace from sterling silver and both raw and tumbled Turquoise from New Mexico. Turquoise that is greener in color has a higher concentration of iron. The color of the stone comes from copper, and varies depending on the concentration of copper in the chemical formula. Today the United States has become the largest producer of gem-quality turquoise with the finest specimens being from Arizona, and Nevada. The turquoise from these mines rivaled any found in Persia and exceeded the quality in many cases. In ancient times, the best mines producing the finest colors of turquoise were found in Persia, but in the late 1800s, miners re-discovered Aztec mines in Arizona and the Western United States. The most prized color of Turquoise in antiquity, and now, is the intense blue most commonly associated with Turquoise as a color, but is very hard to find naturally in a stone.
Although Turquoise is the word we’ve used for several centuries, Pliny the Elder called it Callais, the miners in Iran searched for Priouzeh, and the Aztecs carved their power statues of Moctezuma from Teoxihuitl. The word Turquoise is an Old French word meaning “Turkish” which is where the Europeans first found the gem mined from the Khorasan Province in Iran for sale in the bazaars of Turkey. So Emilie finished polishing it all the way around, and wrapped both pieces in sterling silver wire! Called Moon over the Horizon, the moon face is made from carved yak bone. Emilie Jefferson belongs to a lapidary club, and as she was polishing this turquoise stone she cut, it broke.
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