Arizona turquoise. Sleeping Beauty Turquoise Nuggets- 40 g

Sleeping Beauty Turquoise: the most iconic turquoise from Arizona

The Sleeping Beauty Turquoise mine is located near Globe, Arizona, east of Phoenix. Sleeping Beauty Turquoise is known for its uniform sky-blue color and lack of host rock matrix. However, natural Sleeping Beauty turquoise can appear in a variety of shades, including green on rare occasions, and may even include dark host rock and pyrite.

Like many old turquoise mines, the claim was originally for producing copper and gold in the late 1800s, and turquoise was a surprise byproduct. The Sleeping Beauty mine is located near the Castle Dome and Pinto Valley mines, which are situated along the southern slopes of the Porphyry Mountains. Large quantities of copper and turquoise come from this region of Arizona. The copper in the soil is what creates the bright blue turquoise.

The Sleeping Beauty mine became very popular in the 1970s and has become one of the most famous turquoise mines in the Southwest. The light, pale blue colors offered by the Sleeping Beauty mine have become a staple in Native American jewelry. Because Sleeping Beauty turquoise typically lacks a distinct matrix, solid blue stones can easily be imitated using plastic or non-turquoise materials claiming to be Sleeping Beauty. For this reason, as always, it is important to ensure that you purchase turquoise from a reputable company.

Ray Lovato turquoise necklace, Sleeping Beauty motif, handcrafted.
While the Sleeping Beauty mine has produced an abundant amount of turquoise over the years, it was closed around 2012 due to rising costs of accessing the turquoise deposit. All Sleeping Beauty turquoise you see available on the market was mined before that date.