Sleeping Beauty turquoise is one of the most recognizable varieties in the world, often synonymous with the term “turquoise.” Its vibrant sky-blue hue and minimal matrix have contributed to its global fame, rivaling even the highly sought-after robin’s egg blue Persian turquoise. This gemstone typically forms in nuggets featuring a soft white matrix, occasionally containing small amounts of quartz or pyrite. Over time, as demand shifted towards stones with more matrix, some sellers began artificially darkening the matrix using shoe polish and other methods to enhance contrast.

### Sleeping Beauty Turquoise Cabs

Located in Globe, Arizona, the Sleeping Beauty turquoise mine is renowned as a major producer of turquoise, yielding everything from low-grade white chalk to high-quality, sky-blue stones prized in European markets that favor a matrix-free appearance. Its consistent color, affordability, and high availability have made it a favorite among Native American artisans, particularly from the Zuni Pueblo.

The mine gets its name from the nearby mountain range, which is said to resemble a sleeping woman with crossed arms when viewed from a distance.

Due to rising government regulations and mining costs, the mine closed in 2012, leading to a significant increase in the price of Sleeping Beauty turquoise since then.

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IMITATION TURQUOISE

Some material sold as turquoise is actually colored plastic. In other cases, real minerals such as howlite and quartzite are dyed to imitate natural turquoise and can be difficult to identify as fakes.

Other stones simply resemble the real thing. Several of these so-called “turquoise family” minerals share similar chemical formulas, form in rocks in similar ways, and have similar crystal structures. Because turquoise is more marketable, these stones are sometimes sold as turquoise, which is unfortunate because they are attractive in their own right:

  • Chalcosiderite (kal-koh-SID-er-ite) is a whitish mineral also known as New Lander.
  • Chrysocolla (kri-SOH-koh-lah) is a hard green-blue mineral whose colors often vary widely within the same specimen.
  • Faustite (FAWS-tite) is an apple-green mineral that forms alongside turquoise in Nevada’s Carico Lake region and other locations.
  • Variscite (VEH-rih-site) ranges from light to dark green and often displays attractive webbing patterns.
  • Malachite (MAL-uh-kite) and Azurite (AZH-er-ite) are copper ores that, like turquoise, are cut and polished for jewelry. Their blue and green colors — and even the regions where they are found — closely resemble those of turquoise.

Get It in Writing

How can you protect yourself from misrepresentation? The best way is to obtain proper written documentation of your purchase. Turquoise dealers are legally required to accurately and truthfully represent the stones they sell and to fully disclose any treatments or enhancements.