Turquoise can range in color from a sky blue, to green/blue, to green, depending on the minerals contained in it. This beautiful stone is credited with many metaphysical properties. Turquoise is a stone of energy and communication. It is believed to clear the mind, improve communication skills, increase energy and enthusiasm, and encourage creativity. It motivates us to begin new projects, and it increases our attention to details. Turquoise is said to give us courage, bring prosperity and good fortune, and promote happiness. It fosters loyalty, friendship, cooperation, and understanding. It promotes wisdom, common sense, and compassion. Turquoise is one of the birthstones for the month of December, and it is associated with the Zodiac signs of Aquarius, Taurus, Capricorn, and Sagittarius. It is given as a gift for the 5th and 11th years of marriage. Turquoise is the Gemstone for the States of Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico.
The following article about turquoise is written by Stephanie Pflumm
This is a complicated, persnickety stone. Just the right minerals have to be in just the right place for a very long time (millions of years), before you finally get Turquoise.
Copper, aluminum & phosphorus are the most important minerals needed to form Turquoise. Iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, silicon & zinc can become included into the gem during the formation influencing color & hardness.
Copper is key to beginning the process of creating Turquoise. The mineral is introduced into host rocks by heated magma rising to the earth’s surface. Hydrothermal actions created by the heat of the magma will break down nearby feldspar, releasing aluminum. Phosphoric acids leach from apatites (rocks not usually found near copper deposits) leaving the needed phosphorus.
Just getting past this complicated process will not be enough . . . the host stones must also stay above the water table for millions of years. As Mother Earth heaved & cooled, mountains rose, seas formed & disappeared, these deposits of copper, aluminum & phosphorus had to remain under great pressures & stay dry.
Almost all Turquoise is found in areas with volcanic or thermal histories and the finest grades of the gem are found closest to the earth’s surface. The stone must be able to “dry out” in order to maintain it’s hardness. Deeper deposits of Turquoise become soft because of acids created as water percolates through the earth.
One of the exceptions to this is the Lone Mountain Mine in Nevada. This rich deposit of Turquoise was sent deep into Mother Earth after seismic activity caused the deposit to fault.
Turquoise is found around the world. Its history as a spiritual stone goes back over 7500 years.
Persian Turquoise is considered some of the finest in the world (& some of the earliest mines). China, North & South America, Saudia Arabia, Tibet also have significant deposits of this gem. Virginia has an extremely rare Turquoise that forms in prismatic crystals.
Turquoise’s color can range from a perfect sky blue (Persian) to pale greenish blue. As with every gemstone, it is the minerals that bring the colors. The more copper the more blue the stone will be. Iron inclusions make the stone more green. When silicon includes itself into a Turquoise, you get a harder, more stable stone with a richer luster.
Egyptians prized Turquoise as a Life Stone. The oldest pieces of jewelry set with this gem are four braclets found on the mummified arm of Queen Zar. She ruled in Egypt about 5500 BC.
Highly revered in Tibet, a Turquoise stone was carried throughout one’s entire life. It was exchanged as currency & the finest stones were considered more valuable than gold.
Turquoise is still a valued power stone. It will strengthen & align all of the Chakras & can be used to cleanse your energy centers. As a meditation tool, the gem can assist in clearing your mind, opening you to the Universal All. Use Turquoise to attune to the spiritual plane or provide protection during vision quests or astral travel.
Native Americans believed the stone brought protection to a rider upon a horse. I consider Turquoise an vital protection stone (When my children started driving, I made sure there was always some Turquoise in the car) guarding against accidents, violence, disease, evil & it will give you courage.
Turquoise is also useful in Abundance medicine. It can help attract wealth, promote harmony, bring new friends & joy.
Healing uses for Turquoise range from curing stomach disorders to insanity. It is said to aid in scorpion stings or snake bites. Preventing migraine headaches, strengthening the eyes, & alleviating fevers are also excellent healing properties of this gem. The gem can be ground into a powder, mixed with water & drunk for stomach problems. Or use it as a “drawing stone”, visualize the ailment leaving the body & entering the stone.
This information was taken from ORE Features, a publication written by Stephanie Pflumm, reprinted with permission.
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