To the newbie mineral buyers out there: beware of the fake turquoise. Real turquoise is sold by the gram. It costs BIG TIME. Expect to pay good money for the real stuff.
Here are some links that offer good information on turquoise:
http://www.the-vug.com/vug/vugfakes.html#turquoise Very important site for fakes information.
http://www.rockhounds.com/rocknet/index.shtml - then search on "turquoise"
http://www.rockhounds.com/rocknet/messages/37444.shtml
http://www.nfobase.com/html/turquoise.html
http://www.thesantafesite.com/Articles/truthonturquoise.html
http://www.americana.net/jewelry_turquoise_quality_article.html
http://indianvillage.com/turquoisegrades.htm
http://www.skystonetrading.com/turquoise.asp
The majority of chinese dealers (including those who distribute from sites within the US, Canada, and Europe) offer manufactured turquoise. Here is how it is made:
1) Take cheap, low-grade turquoise. Pulverise it. Mix it with plastic (window grouting plastic is frequently used), or epoxy.
2) Take some gravel, crush it up. Swirl it into the plastic to make 'matrix'.
3) Throw some blue dye in. Swirl things around some more.
4) Let the 'nugget' set up overnight. Maybe cook it in your oven a bit to speed things up.
5) Buff the surface up real nice. Dip it in tallow, or wax to get a nice shine.
6) Sell it to an unsuspecting buyer - rip him/her off good for a hundred bucks.
7) Laugh all the way to the bank.
There may, in fact, be no turquoise in the 'specimen' at all. Oftentimes they use Howlite soaked in "Tidy Bowl" toilet dye. Hysterically enough, they refer to Howlite as "White Turquoise". Listen folks, turquoise is BLUE. Or, to be specific, it is TURQUOISE in color. That's where the word 'turquoise' comes from, afterall. "White Turquoise" is ludicrous. That's like saying "Yellow Azurite".
Update to the above: yes, there is White Buffalo Turquoise. The real thing is in EXTREMELY limited quantity, and comes from the Dry Creek Mine north of Austin, Nevada, USA. It is the only known true white turquoise in the world. Since it's discovery, plenty of imitators have tried to pass off Howlite as White Buffalo Turquoise. There is considerable confusion. Howlite is dirt cheap. White Buffalo Turquoise is very very expensive. If you want the real, White Buffalo, then you better investigate, and research, and really really know your stuff. I just googled for White Buffalo Turquoise, and 99% of what I found was Howlite.
see: www .vcnevada.com and www .turquoisebuffalo.com/page/TBG/CTGY/j_wt (my word processor sometimes puts spaces after the www. If so, just remove them)
So, excluding the real, authentic, rare Dry Creek White Buffalo turquoise, and continuing with the discussion of fake turquoise:
The resulting 'specimen' is brittle, fragile, useless for cabbing. The newbies who fall for this ruse weren't intending on making cabachons from it anyway. So they don't find out that it is fake until they show it to a knowledgable person. Boy are they dissapointed when they find out they got ripped off by a crook for $189.00 US. Too late now, so sorry.
I have accused chinese dealers of selling fake turquoise - the replies are hysterical:
1) I bought this piece from my brother, and he told me it was real....
2) My mineral expert assures me that this is very expensive material, is the real thing...
3) I am not an expert at this, but the dealer at the mineral market where I buy this says it is very good specimen...
4) It must be real, because I paid a lot of money for it...
5) We sometimes do sell the natural turquoise, but everyone else sells the fake stuff, so what can we do? We have to sell fake stuff too...
Every week, dozens of these pieces of cra* are sold to unsuspecting buyers. That comes out to thousands of dollars a week, in the US alone. Now, multiply that accross the entire world. Now, multiply that by 52 weeks. Now, we're talking a few million dollars. Now, ask yourself, how can this trade exist without the knowledge of the chinese government? Now, repeat after me: "International Conspiracy". Say it again.
Don't be ignorant. If you plan on purchasing minerals, you MUST educated yourself as to what they are, what they cost, where they come from. Knowledge is power, and that is especially true in the mineral world.
Lastly, when you see turquoise, and it is coming from a chinese dealer, or the turquoise came from china, be afraid, BE VERY AFRAID. Avoid it like the plague. Buy your turquoise from reputable dealers (which excludes the majority of the chinese mineral dealers, including the one that sells large 'yellow' quartz specimens, which are actually brown, but which have been oiled, photographed under yellow light, and then doctored in photoshop - and some of you can guess who I am talking about - he is the 'honest' mineral dealer out there, the biggest chinese dealer on ebay, who lives on SD520 RipUoff Avenue. Also, the chinese dealer who is very bright, even, shining).
Addendum: This guide has been read almost 5000 times since I published it, a little more then a year ago. Since then, I have seen the incidence of fake chinese turquoise drop considerably. It is still around, but less so. Also, the prices these crooks are getting is much less then before. Also, they hide the names of people who bid on their junk turquoise, because they know that I will contact the buyers before the auction ends, and tell them of the fraud. They also have moved the majority of the turquoise out of auctions, and into "Buy It Now", again, to prevent me from contacting them. Makes me laugh. This goes to show that you CAN have an impact if you stand up for what is right, and take the time to help your fellow human, neighbor, ebay buyer. Hats off to all who have read and understood this guide.
I do think it is very interesting: within 1 week after I published this guide, 6 readers gave negative feedback. I have never received another negative feedback since. All others were positive. Now, I ask you: just who do you think gave me that negative feedback? Hmmm? You want to bet that they all live in China, and sell fake turquoise? HA! I have also received many many emails thanking me. So, because of me, tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars, haven't been ripped off. I sleep well at night.
Addendum 11/2007 - Looks like I have gotten some more negative reviews. I guess some new chinese dealers have come online! So, for them, I present some real slabs, and what they should look like: w w w .greatslabs.com/slabs_turquoise.shtml. Remember, real turquoise doesn't come in cute little rounded nodules like the chinese dealers want you to think. It comes in ROCKS, that have to be sawed apart. The stuff is supposed to be HARD, like ROCKS, because that is what turquoise IS. So, look at the slabs, and then look at the chinese stuff (that is, from the fakes dealers), and then ask yourself - could a high school kid tell the difference? Answer is: yes.
I have ebay buyers write me all the time asking for help and advice, which I try to give. Problem: when you buy one bead, or one little finished piece of jewelry, then, without taking it to a gemologist and having it assayed, you really can't figure out what it is (maybe the hot pin test works, but not if it is dyed Howlite.
So, good luck,
remember: eat only good food, drink only good wine, and always, ALWAYS, stay well mineralized.
Submitted by Godzilla's bastard brother, via his far east representative
Sougalana Egami
Orignal From: Beware - those large chinese turquoise rocks are FAKE!!
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