Identifying the Matrix in Turquoise Rings
When buying turquoise rings you might be a little astounded by the
number of shades of blue, green and yellow that actually exist for
this gemstone. Furthermore, most turquoise stones are also webbed
with spider veins of minerals that are called the matrix. The color
of the stone as well as the appearance and color of its spidery
veins can tell you quite a bit about where it is from and its
geological history.
Turquoise stone is the result of 30 millions years of water
trickling through a host stone to create copper and aluminum
deposits. If the mix has more copper, the turquoise will be more
blue in hue; if more aluminum is in the deposit then the color of
the turquoise will be green to white in hue. If zinc is also in the
mix as well the resulting turquoise will also be quite yellow and
maybe even lime green!
The matrix which makes up the stone's veins are the remnants of the
host stone that the turquoise was formed in. A black matrix is is
formed from iron pyrite; a gold-brown matrix from iron oxide, and a
yellow to brown matrix from rhyolite. The more spidery close
together these veins of pyrite, iron or rhyolite are the more
valuable the turquoise is. The spacing of the matrix webbing is
definitely one thing to keep in mind when you are shopping for
turquoise rings and remember the narrow the veins are the better!
The blue copper matrix is commonly found in turquoise rings made of
silver, which go well with the stone's cool tone. Copper also suites
stones with a matrix of aluminum or copper. The rare yellow-green
oxide type makes a very stunning center stone for a turquoise gold
ring.
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