Turquoise Specialist Mini Course
Turquoise Care Guide
Why is Turquoise Soft and Porous?
Turquoises form naturally through a relatively gentle process of dissolving primary minerals into a solution containing copper, aluminum, and phosphorus. These elements bind together, often with many other impurities in the underground environment, and create many individual cryptocrystalline components. The resulting gemstone is an aggregate of many tiny parts. This is why turquoise is a relatively soft and porous gem. With a hardness of 5 to 6 on the Mohs scale, it can be scratched even by household dust, which contains quartz and has a hardness of 7.
What Causes Turquoise Discoloration?
Historically, people believed turquoise stones darkened due to a sympathetic reaction to the wearer. Indeed, turquoise wearers can inadvertently darken the stones, but this reaction is physical, not mystical. Since turquoise is made from many distinct pieces
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