Hubei Turquoise Beaded Necklace

Description

The length of the necklace is 22 inches (56 cm). The size of the rondelle beads varies from 16 mm … more The length of the necklace is 22 inches (56 cm). The size of the rondelle beads varies from 16 mm to 40 mm.
Turquoise ranges in color from a light shade of green to light blue to a beautiful dark blue. Turquoise beads have a dark brown or black matrix and a beautiful spider webbing.
No thermal or other mechanical treatments were used. Genuine, stabilized, no color added, blue turquoise from China's Hubei Province.
The necklace is fastened with a rare silver handmade clasp with a cabochon of natural blue turquoise.
This necklace alternates beads of turquoise with 3.5 mm tiny sterling silver beads.
The weight of the necklace is 480 grams (17oz).

Known since the late 1980s, turquoise deposits in Zhushan County in central China's Hubei Province are becoming a significant source of attractive material. The turquoise forms lenses and fracture fillings within Cambrian-age slates.
Named for China's Hubei Province, it is a natural turquoise variety. The majority of the world's turquoise now comes from mines in China due to the scarcity of American turquoise. Some industry experts expect the Chinese varieties to go up in price over the next decade as it too, becomes rarer. less