Sleeping Beauty Turquoise Rough — Arizona Collector Cabochon Stone

Four pieces of genuine Sleeping Beauty Turquoise rough, out of an old collection and originally mined at Globe, Arizona. This is the material that built the reputation: an even robin's egg blue with almost none of the dark webbing you find in most turquoise, which is precisely what lapidary artists and collectors chase. Each piece is measured and weighed individually, and you receive the exact specimen you choose.

Is it really as scarce as everyone says? Yes, and for an unusual reason. The mine didn't run dry. In 2012 the operation was sold and the new owners chose to concentrate on copper, which was simply worth more per tonne, so turquoise production stopped while good stone was still in the ground. Every piece in circulation today came out before that date, which is why prices have climbed steadily ever since.

A closer look at this material

Turquoise forms when copper-rich water works its way down through cracks in the host rock over an immense span of time, and the copper it carries is what produces the blue. Sleeping Beauty material came out of granite in nuggets and seams, dense enough that it usually cuts and polishes without stabilizing. Turquoise was worked in this region long before the modern mine existed, and the Navajo, Hopi, and Zuni have used it in jewellery and ceremony for centuries, so a piece like this carries genuine Southwestern history alongside its blue.

• Stone: Natural Sleeping Beauty Turquoise, minimal matrix
• Origin: Globe, Arizona, USA, from an old collection
• Form: Rough for cabochons, jewellery, and display
• Colour: Clean, uniform sky blue
• Chakras: Throat

Option 1: 38 x 35 x 29mm, 38g. Option 2: 29 x 23 x 18mm, 11g. Option 3: 37 x 27 x 13mm, 11g. Option 4: 28 x 23 x 16mm, 12g.

Working with and caring for it

Cut it slowly and keep the heat down, since turquoise is softer than the quartz family and can check if it's worked hard. Finished or raw, keep it away from oils, perfume, household cleaners, and long hours of direct sun, any of which can dull or green the colour over years. A closed case or a lined drawer is ideal for storage. In tradition, turquoise sits at the throat chakra as a stone of communication, protection, and emotional balance, which is a fair part of why it has stayed treasured for so long.

Please note: crystals are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Keep small pieces away from young children.