Cripple Creek turquoise is from near Cripple Creek, Colorado. This turquoise was found while mining for gold. The color varies from green to blue and sometimes contains gold ore. This turquoise has a hardness of 7, which is harder than glass and almost as hard as quartz (H=8). As a result, it does not need to be stabilized or backed. It occurs in small nuggets that are often used as they are in jewelry, or may be cut into cabs. A small inventory of this turquoise is now available here and more will be coming in the next month. Turquoise is a popular gemstone in jewelry, especially in Native American inspired jewelry.
Turquoise is a copper phosphate mineral and is frequently found with other copper minerals that vary from blue to green. If you like turquoise you may also like chrysocolla, shattuckite, and sonora sunrise. Sonora sunrise is named because of the combination of green and red colors that mimic a sunrise scene.