Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge I bought a ring from a Turkish jeweller, the original stone was onyx and I requested Turquoise they swapped the stone with 2 weeks without extra cost. The turquoise stone was beautiful highly polished. I touch it it felt a bit waxy and was cold. As soon as I got home I took your advice and used all the test methods. I gave the next day I gave my sister the ring for an additional test to the stone with hydrochloric acid in her lab she’s a chemist and no reaction. I’m now confident to gift it to my husband. Thanks to you and the generous Turkish jeweller at Brent Cross London Desire
Thank you, so much for this demonstration. My daughter had given me a beautiful bracelet with a turquoise stone, but I knew right away that it wasn’t. It looked like polymer, to me, and so, I scraped away the surface (not having watched this video) - a lighter turquoise, then white revealed itself. When I wrote to the designer (Etsy), she was actually glad to know, but sad that she, too, was deceived by the supplier. I will treasure it, and wear it, because it was a gift, and I won’t tell my daughter what I found out. I’m glad to know, now, how to test it, should I ever buy a turquoise piece, myself. Thank you!
Hi Betsy, Its true, most of the stones out there are not real turquoise and so much confusion could be avoided with a few simple tests :) Glad you found this helpful and good luck on your future turquoise purchases!
No. You should tell your daughter what you found out and teach her how to test visually and at home too. Its an education. Tell her that her 'mistake' is a good learning experience and does not lower the value of the gift as it is from her and Howlite is visually as pretty. I used to take my kids when they were little, to the annual massive gemshows in Tucson, AZ and quiz them on stones, testing, and such. As a result, they became little experts on minerals and gemstones, and love them to this day. Everything is a learning experience, even the mistakes. Don't withhold the truth from your kid even if it was a gift. She deserves to know. It will also make her a savvy shopper. A lot of stone wholesalers from India are massive scammers. Jaipur, India, is the cut stone capital of the world. Unfortunately, once they discovered Etsy, many of them are passing off resin as amber, Howlite as Turquoise, and so forth. I am very severe with them when I find out. Gemstones and jewelry must have the highest ethics and credibility. I have zero tolerance from scammers. Nepal is passing off massive resin balls as old Tibetan amber - yet another scam. Fortunately, amber is very easy to test with a blue light.
Taking a hair and stretching it tightly over the stone then putting the burning end of a cigarette on the hair will tell you- If the hair singes and breaks, fake.. If the hair stays intact, real-- The stone absorbs the heat.. Excellent field test.. Learned it in Arizona at the mines...
I actually knew about all of these tests before I watched this video, but it's still interesting nonetheless. One thing I'd like to point out is that there is a lot of fake turquoise in the market, but there's also a lot of stabilized turquoise too. Natural, gem-quality turquoise is constantly becoming rarer, and the majority of turquoise you'll find in jewelry nowadays is stabilized. I think most people associate that as it being fake, but that's not the case. The stabilized turquoise you usually see in jewelry is mostly chalk turquoise, which is the most common type of turquoise that's found, and it's too soft to be used in jewelry unless it has been stabilized. I think it can be a good option for most people though because it's affordable, it still looks pretty nice (at least in my opinion), and it actually does have some benefits over natural turquoise. After stabilization, it does become much harder, and the process also prevents oils and things from penetrating the stone over time, so it will never change color, and it will never crumble. Natural turquoise can change color over time depending on what it comes in contact with. There's also the rarity factor of natural, gem-quality turquoise that makes it very difficult to find. I have a few pieces, and they were definitely not cheap... at all, so anything I'd actually wear would probably be stabilized simply because it can withstand daily life better, and it's much easier to find replacements if anything should happen to them.
Hi Steampunk, Thank you, you bring up a lot of good points, especially about how natural turquoise will change colors. This one little bit of trivia is one that escapes a lot of people as they assume a color change means their stone is a fake. I am certainly considering doing a follow up video about turquoise as this one has been more popular than I would have guessed.
I am currently on my sixth decade on this Earth 🌎 and as I have always said, “every single day you learn something new ”. Thank you for a great lesson of which firstly I’ll be passing on to my daughter who loves turquoise.👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
Great practical tests for turquoise, especially for the casual buyer. Turquoise is one of the most difficult gemstones for a buyer to try to understand & identify, because so much of the value is based on its origin (mine name, lore) and many sellers are willing to attach false provenance. Turquoise has so much variation in matrix, color & stone features, that even with material from the same mine so can be really frustrating to quantify, that many consumers just rely on the honesty of a seller- which is not always warranted. So having some simple tests that we can use to at least discern physical properties is extremely helpful. Thank you!
I did the one thing you should never do which is buy turquoise off someone on the street. Someone on Facebook posted a Navajo silver ring with set turquoise and red coral which looked worn out heavily. I was mostly after the silver, which to my luck it actually was, and thanks to your video and others I was able to test both stones and they are also 100% real. Thanks again for sharing this info!
Thank you Austin for this excellent demonstration. I knew my stones were dyed Howlite because of the lighter color around the hole drilled in the bead.
Sir, Your video helped me to identify a fake piece of turquoise using the Acetone test. All pieces passed the heat test. That being said, I say the following out of love. Your video highlighted all real - non test failure - pieces except for where that one piece, from that $1.50 bag, where it failed the acetone test. It's good to show BOTH modes - pass or fail for the viewer. I wanted to see a heat test failure. Thank you again!
I admit, This video could improve by showing the hot needle test failure. Which is why I later made a second video showing what that looks like here: ua-cam.com/video/VJf6ibYIiTg/v-deo.htmlsi=JGW5X6xRXseatkYZ
@@earthartgems Sir, I thank you but literally minutes ago, I saw your posting "New Untestable Fake Turquoise" which, as I am watching it right now, covers all the things I had requested. I thank you so very much for your video's. Have a great day.
@@stephen6640 You're most welcome :) I feel like turquoise is one of those subjects that could easily fill dozens of videos :) I just keep adding more as I have time.
@@earthartgems Agreed and frankly you and I share the same sentiments about amber. I want to fashion some items with turquoise and will lean on your site to help guide me.
After watching this video I was able to use this technique to test some recent purchases I made online that I was having some question about. Sure enough one of the pieces rubbed off blue dye, which was funny because as soon as it turned blue on my qtip the stone fell out of the setting. But what was nice was when I checked three other pieces I wasn’t sure about they were fine. Thank you for this wonderful tip. Now I know that there’s a pretty good way to test!
Thank you for this most helpful video. I recently ordered a few estate sterling pieces with turqouise. In the ad, they claimed it as faux turquoise, but i have my doubts, because you can tell these are quality pieces of jewelry and they even state on their site that not all pieces are tested. So i cant wait to receive them and do your tests on them. Either way, the sterling statement bracelets alone, along with the other pieces of jewelry were worth the price i paid 😊
Thanks!! I am new to this, but I have always wanted to make some really cool guitar straps with some turquoise. I have been a guitar player for a million years, and about 14 years ago, I took a really nice suede guitar strap and glued on (with the correct glue from Michael's) Native American beads, and man, did it come out great! Anyway, I have a lot of really nice straps, suede and finished leather, and yesterday, I went to a yard sale and I bought a necklace with turquoise (I think) and I already cut the stones apart and taped them on the strap (upon the advice of my 17 year old son) to establish the correct placement before gluing it on and I can't believe I didn't think of that myself. so, man, it looks so beautiful, and I am going to take the strap out to my workshop and put it on the bench and glue the stones on tomorrow. I have been a professional guitar player for years, but I am a BEGINNER at turquoise. THANK YOU!!!!!!
The really old turquoise and silver jewelry was made from coin silver, rather than sterling, the fragility meant that fewer of these pieces survived intact, thus making for more authentic loose stones.
I have had several pieces of what I have though was turquoise for 30+ years. It looks a lot like your dyed howlite. The funny thing is I was planning on buying some white howlite for my collection. It turns out I might already have some! I am looking forward to testing it out now.
Twenty years ago we traveled around out West in the 4 corners area and met a Zuni native that made it his mission to educate people on the different types of turquoise and imitations. He didn't mind people at the tourist traps selling fake stuff, he did mind that it wasn't labeled as an imitation. He would show you the scratch test on fake stones. People would come into a Native Artisans shop and say they saw the same squash blossom neckless in a shop on Navahoe land for 1/3rd the price, not knowing the stones were not 100% turquoise. Some of the unscrupulous sellers sold imitation jewelry from Tiawon that was marked Zuni, they got around the law by naming a town in Tiawon Zuni so they could put their mark on it! We found a Zuni collective that sold only original native-made jewelry and the Craftsman got a full 90% of the sales price, no price gouging, and guaranteed real stuff.
It is sad jut how prevalent this type of activity is. It gives the entire industry a bad name. I agree, there is plenty of room in the market for imitation turquoise or other man made stones. The importance is honesty at the sellers counter. Thanks for that little tidbit of history as well, I learned something today.
How can we tell quality of turquoise? I have a ton of inherited turquoise from my grandpa. He was pretty discerning with gemstones/minerals. Collected and dug up a lot of arrowheads at the Snake River too.
Can you believe it I must be the only woman who doesn't have nail polish remover!!!! But trust me next time I go out the door!!!! Mr. Moore thank you for this because I need to sell my stuff, matter of life or death, and this will help me in the long run. I have beads and cant tell if there real or not, usually I can with no problem but not these and wont try to sell them without knowing for sure I dont want to under sell for me or over sell for anyone else either. So thank you again. :)
I'm the lucky gardian of two gorgeous turquoises: one from Iran with pyrite, and a vintage sleeping beauty with an Amazing blue sky color. Both naturals and non stabilized, I'm so glad! I've got several stabilized pièces, but I don't feel their energy...
Thank you so much for this video. Got a bunch of turquoise today that I haven’t yet paid for. I told the guy I wasn’t really into it and he kept pressing. A lot of the ones I tested with acetone today were dyed. Now I’m going to continue with the other tests
You're welcome! Glad this was helpful in spotting some dyed stones. If you're interested, I also have a few other follow up videos I did which might prove helpful, One I uploaded yesterday where I discuss a few man made stones I came across that do not respond to either test, so its worth a peek.
I bought a squash blossom necklace from a pawnshop in Placerville CA some years back. My Mom was with me and we asked if we could test the stones. They had no problem with our testing. We had a needle and a lighter and it was negative for plastic. Now I need to check to see if the color come off. Thanks for the information!
Thank you! I appreciate it. I definitely will check it out for the future but when I confronted him, he admitted that even the ones that didn’t fall the tests were completely fake. Really frustrating but I’m glad for the resource and that I knew there was a win the first place
Yes, thanks! I’ve been collecting turquoise & silver jewellery for a few years. It’s nice to have some criteria as I look at stone in a shop. Luckily, I’ve been using a very reputable seller.
I have a few old pieces, I let my daughters and soon my GrandDaughter wear. It is the good stuff form the 1950's and I really enjoy family wearing it. Thanks for a good vid, do us some more.! I have been always into the pottery and have one two Grey Hills rug from early sixtys. Now have experts almost related to help me on rugs. My Grandson immediately knew I had Churro wool and showed me how to tell.
Liked! Bookmarked! Subscribed! And took notes even utilizing the comments. I have read so much about turquoise over the last 11 years attempting to classify my small collection. The quest to seek next is to determine glass from real turquoise. The stones in one necklace are heavy with a high gloss shine. Also alot of silver inclusions. Definitely not plastic. I suspect the stones are real simply because several other pieces of jewelry purchased in the lot are authenic.
Thank you for this info Austin! I have a question regarding the hot needle test. If a piece of genuine turquoise has been coated with a lacquer, wouldn’t the hot needle test make it seem like plastic? The heat would melt the lacquer or epoxy a little bit and give off a chemical smell. Isn’t that right? So how could you tell it’s just a coating & the stone isn’t actually plastic? Thank you so much for your help!
That's a great point, I had not thought about this, thank you. There have been so many helpful and positive comments on this video I almost feel like a follow up is needed where I address all these questions. I suppose it certainly would give you a false reading. But lacquer coated turquois is not very common. When I have run across it, I generally was able to see if it was coated by looking at the back of the stone, where a lazy job means there is visible areas where the coating did not cover the stone and you can see the transition... This is very common on ammolite cabs.
Update: the stones I’ve tested so far with acetone nail polish remover are not showing ANY blue color…just a bit of dusty dirt that’s coming off. I may have a gemologist give it a look over if it’s not too expensive bc I just don’t know enough about selling turquoise. Thanks again! Thanks so much! I’m a vintage reseller…mostly decorative collectibles and also some vintage costume jewelry. But sometimes I come across stones and 925 silver (not much real gold though) that is high quality and the real thing…mostly semi-precious if in stones and I want to become more knowledgeable. I also have a “turquoise” necklace that I bought for myself in a thrift store for just a few bucks and that I think I may sell IF it is REAL TURQUOISE. I’ve already scratched it (gently with the end of a small screwdriver) in an inconspicuous place and can’t seem to get it to scratch. I highly doubt that it is real, but I’m gonna do the acetone test to see what happens. I’ll update this comment to let you know what happened. Thanks again.
Thanks! My watch tips I bought has real turquoise! Can’t find a lighter to see if it has been treated but at least I know it passed the Acetone test! 🙌
Excellent information! Thank you for this great demo!!! I had a house fire and it burned up my whole collection of Native American jewelry. I have a ring and a silver squash blossom necklace that I need to replace with turquoise stones. After Covid and lack of work, I don't have money any more. Any idea where I can go to get some blue green turquoise that I could shape and polish myself and reset in my old necklace? I would love to bring it back to life. That fire was devastating, it burned to the ground and I lost everything I ever had.
Interesting video. I was also wondering if using an UV light might help to see if stones have resins or plastics. Usually these light up yellow under UV light and I found out that way I have a fake Sugilite.
great idea. I had not thought of that but yes, that would be a great test to do that is non-destructive and quick, could be done at gem shows and so on.
These are all really good tips. I strongly suspect that I inherited a beautiful squash blossom necklace but the three turquoise stones that are set in the old-fashioned bezels might be stabilized turquoise. On one hand it’s still a beautiful piece of jewelry but on the other I want to know if it’s real turquoise or not for insurance purposes. I heard a rumor and I have heard from a couple of jewelers that back in the 60s and early 70s a lot of turquoise that made it into the American market came from China that was actually dyed Howlite
Thanks for this. I have used the acetone test but not the hot soldering pick test before. I have a large amount of old mine stock Qingu rough turquoise and will be testing each piece before I sell it. I have cabbed quite a bit of it and know it to be naturally hard but double checking for resin will give me more peace of mind! Thank you.
Is there an easy way to do the hot soldering trick without, well soldering? I have tried acetone trick and it passed! Buuut i really don't have the tools to test with soldering 😂
@@xenyadominguez8209 You just need a needle, some pliers to hold it and a lighter or gas stove top to heat the needle. I heat the needle for a few seconds and then touch the back of the piece with it immediately.
Fascinating. I’ll be testing the turquoise I have (not much). I actually love howlite so I’m wondering if it’s possible to remove the dye and return it to it’s natural state? 🧐
I loved watching you....I've been buying turquouse for 30 years. Thanks for the infirmation. What about amber?? How to tell real from fake?? Hot rod to test as well or what do you recommend?? Thanks Kellie of Texas
Hi Kellie, Thank you! To answer your question about the hot needle test for amber: It does work, but in a different way: It will melt the amber regardless of if it is natural amber, or a resin. What it does is release a SMELL. Amber will of course smell pitchy and resin will have a very chemically scent. Be sure to test in a place that will be covered by a setting, or plan on re-polishing. Having piece of known resin and amber on hand to test helps so that you can learn what the smells should smell like- use as a control.
Hi! I tested an amber my late mum gave to me (she had worked in a jewelry store) with salt water; it will float to the top of a glass of water saturated with salt (I used sea salt). Blessed be🌹
There's this place in my home town that sells turquoise it's owned by a Arabic the stones there looked sketchy but I just went ahead and bought a stone the only cost 13 dollars this video really helped thank you
बहुत महत्वपूर्ण, उपयोगी जानकारी दी आपने आपका बहुत बहुत धन्यवाद❤❤❤❤❤❤ मेरे पास भी कुछ पत्थर है मगर मैं उनको नहीं पहचान पा रहा कि वह कौन से है, क्या आप मेरी मदद करेंगे उनकी सही पहचान करने में..!??
Thanks for your comment. I doubt I'd be able to give you a 100 positive ID on your stones without seeing them in person. The heft, the feel the look of a stone in the hand tells you volumes about it and what it is.
Just learned about testing with nail polish remover, and no dye came off. Am surprised, I didn't pay alot for the strand? Thank you, all this information is so fascinating!
I lived in Nevada many years ago and the native American at the turquoise shop showed me what to look for. Never put real turquoise in water ,over time it will turn green because of the copper content.
Amazing! Thank you so much. Interesting and now I know more of these beautiful stones. Seems to what u have been showing here is the more flatter stones has a dark back and are real ones.. take care xxx
These tests will work on rough stone just as well as cabochons and are great for preliminary at home testing. If you want a 100% iron clad assurance: Send it to the GIA or other respectable Lab or find a Graduate gemologist to ID it for you, provided they have the equipment necessary. They can run an analysis on it to check for any dyes or foreign materials/filler.
What a simple way of testing turquoise. I didnt know you could do this. Thanks for sharing! Next I need to figure out how to value them...what to pay for them.
I'm not sure. Not to my knowledge, but then again, I have not really tried it for turquoise, only other gems. But experimentation is always good to try!
Not really sure... From what I know of most jade experts, they can identify based on the look, feel and heft, but do not really use any at-home tests. Just their many many years of experience.
Among turquoise sellers, not a huge issue. But there are a ton, and I mean thousands of sellers that sell mostly beads and other cheaper imitation turquoise and often do not fully disclose the nature of the stone, or might only do so deep in the fine print.
the piece in the back whats that kind called ? its I the middle in the back farthest one out the biggest ..I have a bracelet with that stone .. ill make a video about all my pieces and post soon ... thanks I love turquoise
Hi Austin, this video is extremely helpful. I have a large unfinished cab that belonged to my friend’s father and want to refine it, but it looks stabilized. Does this mean that I can’t use my grinder without gumming up the wheels? I may try a Nova point in my flex shaft first….
I've cut both stabilized and unstabilized on my Genie. As long as you have water coolant running over he wheels you'll be fine. It might just need more water than normal to wash it off, but it will not ruin the nova wheels or diamond grinding wheels.
@@earthartgems Thanks! I ended up doing that. I got no reaction with either test in the video. Looks like the real deal but I don’t know if stabilized stone would react quickly to the hot pick. If it’s real, it looks like Morenci, and the pyrite wasn’t falling out so I’m thinking it’s stabilized.
@@donnaer Probably, but still a good find. Stabilized turquoise is so common that it is still considered acceptable among the trade as long as that treatment is disclosed along the line of buyers.
Thank you so much for this information. Years ago I bought some big turquoise nuggets but was worried they might not be real. Now I know how to test them. Yay!
Kingman, Arizona - this is the STORE for some of the most fantastic turquoise stones - raw stones or polished turquoise jewelry. You must go there. A+ merchandise.
I'm actually working on a new video to test this out. I'm just trying to get some pieces to test on. Interestingly enough, there is new turquoise on the market, that is lab created, that will pass both these tests but it is not real, so I am also trying to determine a test for those. Stay tuned for a future update on that.... the gem world is ever changing.
I'm glad I came across this video. I learned alot, I Hve alot of stones and I can see that a few has been painted even though I didn't test them like you did. But looking at them and feeling them I see what's real and what's not real. But it is good to give them all a test. Very interesting video thank you.❤😊
Thank you Austin, very helpful. Do I assume that to clean turquoise we should use acetone, or it would ruin it? If that’s not the case, can you share how to clean real natural turquoise? Thank you again!
I will generally use something a little milder, like rubbing alcohol or even just vodka (We keep a cheap bottle around for cleaning with). but for the most part, if a stone is dirty, just warm water and a towel will be all it needs. try to avoid harsher chemicals, and soap. Never use bleach. Bleach will also cause gold and silver to become brittle as well as damage some gemstones. Some turquoise, will age over time (darken and sometimes turn greener). I'd like to do a video on this some day as well. I just need to get some older turquoise rings.
@Austin Moore I read on a turquoise forum that one guy would test his turquoise by putting it in distilled water over night. The idea is that natural will change color after being submerged in distilled water for a while, and the stabilized turquoise will not change at all since epoxy or resin is occupying the pores in the stone. I recently purchased some sleeping beauty beads and have been testing them to see whether they are natural or not. Hot needle test came back good for natural with no smell, smoke, or markings. I soaked my stones for about 20 min and noticed small bubbles exiting the stone but no color change (I didn't soak very long). Do you have any thoughts
Hi Johnathan, I've never heard of this or tried it. That said, it doesn't mean it is not true. Still, I am not sure what would cause the turquoise to change color in distilled water. Seeing small bubbles escape the stones would suggest that they are a tiny bit porous and thus, not stabilized. At least that is my guess. One thing to note is that a lot of turquoise is stabilized, but this does not mean it is fake.
Hello Austin. The other day I purchased a 48" long Turquoise nugget necklace from a thrift store. There was hand knotting between the stones. Cost $16.99. My first reaction was “If it’s too good to be true, it probably isn’t.” So I tested it with Acetone and it passed that test. And it passed the red hot needle test too. So what gives? How did it pass?*** It absolutely is magnesite, absolutely. I tried so hard to talk myself into it being ‘authentic’ but something just bugged me. So I conducted even more online research and found some magnesite whose matrix patterns matched exactly my necklace; even the shape of the nuggets. The color they did brilliantly; near Sleeping Beauty color and the fake stones match other real Turquoise I own. I mean in the end, magnesite is after all a naturally occurring mineral in the world. It just isn’t turquoise! Oh ***, on a whim I tested another necklace purchased in Chicago around 1984 while travelling on a business trip. It’s is nuggets and heishi. That piece passed the test as well. These stones are highly polished and are super hard. The confusing part is that these nuggets have spots on a couple of stones that look like it’s a glop of dried epoxy. Again, a mystery. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm If you read this I'd appreciate your thoughts. Thanks... ~~Maureen
Hi Maureen, Indeed that is interesting. Perhaps the dyes used in that era where just of better quality, or maybe once the dyes has set within the stone for a certain amount of time it will no longer leech off. I can only speculate on that. I can say that the last test that I did not perform in this vide is the crush test. You simply pull off a bead, smash it with a hammer and see what the inside looks like. dyes typically have a hard time penetrating all the way into the stone. Having been doing jewelry work for the better part of two decades, I am constantly surprised to learn that often I do not know what I do not know. There are always going to be outliers to every rule of thumb. Always looking to learn more!
Thanks was always curious, how about white turquoise? Or Persian turquoise. Howlite is white correct? How would you know white turquoise vs howlite? Does a stone with more matrix less valuable? Personally I don’t mind a variety.
Howlite is white in its natural form. It also typically form in clusters/nodules, similar to cauliflower. it is not the same as "white turquoise". And on that note, white turquoise is technically not turquoise as it lacks the copper ingredient in the physical make up to be classified as actual turquoise. It just has that name because the veining can sometimes look similar to turquoise. It is actually dolomite. It is currently only found in Nevada. This is also different than magnesite, another common howlite imitation. So in summary, howlite, mangesite and dolomite are all white with black veining, but are three different minerals. This video does not really cover those but they can be differentiated easily with a hardness scratch test. Dolomite is the hardest of the three with a hardness of about 5. The other two range from about 3-4.
@@earthartgems I was recently looking at turquoise jewelry and a few were described as white turquoise. As I have never heard of this it led me to start learning. A bit of an oxymoron. Thanks
non video related question. what polisher and grinder would you recommend as i’m looking to a good quality one. btw the video video was great and helpful.
If you're looking to polish cabochons at home and you want a quality machine, check out Diamond Pacific. They have several good quality set ups that will take you from rough to polished cab.
I've heard a silversmith say they specifically buy turquoise with backing because the backing is supposed to help absorb shock and protect the stone from shattering if a piece is dropped. She makes videos on how to make silver jewelry. Do you think she is incorrect?
She is correct. The backing is often a softer material and does absorb some shock. I've also heard some silversmiths will stick cardboard or even sawdust behind their cabs to provide a shock cushion. I am happy to use turquoise with, or without backing. I also teach classes online (you can see my free classes in my channel). I've been making jewelry for about 15 years and if I've learned one thing: it's that there are a lot of different ways to do things, and most of them are correct.
@@earthartgems Thanks for the explanation! I took 3 silversmithing classes in the 90s in highschool and have suddenly been drawn to get back into things. I have a lot to learn! I will definitely check out your classes! I'm trying to make a basic set up to work at home so I can get back into things. I just bought a butane torch. So glad those are option now! Thanks for your explanation about testing turquoise. Your video is super helpful! New subscriber :)
@@mskinetik Thanks! Yeah, its a very fun thing to do, be it a hobby or profession. My classes basically start at the beginning and build on concepts over time. Here is a link to the first class: ua-cam.com/video/DeQrovic2t0/v-deo.htmlsi=Cc2k27qUtTtkFs1v I have a playlist for the first series. I'll be creating the next series over the next few months.
That would make a great video! My guess is it depends on how thick the dye is and how long you tumble it. But I'm thinking this would be easy to test with some off that classic dyed howlite.
I lived by a Navajo reservation growing up in the 60’s, mom bought a lot of turquoise jewelry at the trading post and on the reservation. One bracelet is silver with white turquoise. We were told the less black veins the more it was worth.
Hello again. Thanks for your note. I was wondering if you'd like to receive two images of jewelry, (to be used with your teaching), that show just how well magnesite can be doctored to look like real turquoise? Let me know. Unfortunately I am unable to attach anything from here. ~~Maureen
Great video! It's very hard to tell whether the turquoise is stabilized or natural unless you have the expensive machine (EDXRF spectroscopy) Do you know any other way to tell the stabilized turquoise?
Not that I've come across myself. A lot of natural turquoise is stabilized and from some mines, it all is, so its considered normal. Mostly, I just like to check for dye and to make sure it is not made from resin or other synthetics.
How do you distinguish White Howlite from Magnesite? I've always thought that Howlite is white with grey veins and Magnesite is white with brownish veins. But I don't know if that is correct. Thanks for this video! Anne
Hi! I realize this was posted 2 years ago but if you are available I wonder if you’ve ever used a presidium II? I just tested a Turquiose necklace with the acetone test and it’s Turquiose. I used the presidium and it came up topaz. It’s confusing the machine? I literally just received the machine a few hours ago
The Presidium machines are pretty fickle. They work OK for some materials, but are not going to give you a definitive result for any gemstone material. I do not use them as I have not found them to be reliable enough for me to trust if I want to identify a gem and then be 100% certain that is what I have when I go to sell it to a customer. It is really more to give you a rough idea of what a stone might, or might not be. As you may have noticed, a lot of the gems overlap on the dial so most of the time the results are non-conclusive. It is also not meant to test turquoise. For some things, like if you are trying to determine if a red stone is a garnet or a ruby then it will work well enough as those two stones have a very different thermal properties. But even after making that determination, a second test would be ideal to confirm. Generally in the GIA (and what they teach their students), two tests are needed to confirm any material. Sometimes 3 or 4.
How can we test stones at a show? Is turquoise from other countries less valuable ? Is there a way to test stones to see where they originate from? Thank you for your hei
The simple answer is you cant. When I buy at a show, I am looking at a stone with years of experience handling turquoise and other gems and so I've got an eye for what is real and what is not. Anyone can do this, it just takes time and practice. And I don't have a 100% success rate, I hate to take my buys home and check them and occasionally something will have snuck past my initial screening. When in doubt, I leave it. Ask lots of questions, and work with dealers that you trust and that you also have a way of contacting after the show (as in, they have a legit business, a website or a store or at least give out their phone number and show schedule).
Are there specific tests (other than heat & acetone) for gaspeite? Also, are there quick tests for natural stone that can be done on the spot when I'm at a sale?
I'm not very familiar with gaspeite, so I cant say. Maybe others in the community can answer this? as far as other quick tests which are non-destructive... I have just learned to feel the stone, the weight and the coolness and its overall look and veining.
Yes, it removes or dulls the color in the howlite, so I'd either test the back of the stone, or if you have a larger parcel, just test one or two pieces.
it is natural turquoise that has had some kind of liquid hardener added, typically a resin or epoxy or plastic, which is then pushed into the stone through vacuum pressure and cured to harden and stabilize the turquoise, which might have otherwise been too soft or brittle to use in jewelry. Depending on what type of stabilizer is used depends on how it is done. typically this is done before the stones are cut into cabochons.
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge I bought a ring from a Turkish jeweller, the original stone was onyx and I requested Turquoise they swapped the stone with 2 weeks without extra cost. The turquoise stone was beautiful highly polished. I touch it it felt a bit waxy and was cold. As soon as I got home I took your advice and used all the test methods. I gave the next day I gave my sister the ring for an additional test to the stone with hydrochloric acid in her lab she’s a chemist and no reaction. I’m now confident to gift it to my husband. Thanks to you and the generous Turkish jeweller at Brent Cross London Desire
Glad to hear you got the real thing!
Thank you, so much for this demonstration. My daughter had given me a beautiful bracelet with a turquoise stone, but I knew right away that it wasn’t. It looked like polymer, to me, and so, I scraped away the surface (not having watched this video) - a lighter turquoise, then white revealed itself.
When I wrote to the designer (Etsy), she was actually glad to know, but sad that she, too, was deceived by the supplier.
I will treasure it, and wear it, because it was a gift, and I won’t tell my daughter what I found out. I’m glad to know, now, how to test it, should I ever buy a turquoise piece, myself. Thank you!
Hi Betsy, Its true, most of the stones out there are not real turquoise and so much confusion could be avoided with a few simple tests :) Glad you found this helpful and good luck on your future turquoise purchases!
No. You should tell your daughter what you found out and teach her how to test visually and at home too. Its an education. Tell her that her 'mistake' is a good learning experience and does not lower the value of the gift as it is from her and Howlite is visually as pretty. I used to take my kids when they were little, to the annual massive gemshows in Tucson, AZ and quiz them on stones, testing, and such. As a result, they became little experts on minerals and gemstones, and love them to this day. Everything is a learning experience, even the mistakes. Don't withhold the truth from your kid even if it was a gift. She deserves to know. It will also make her a savvy shopper.
A lot of stone wholesalers from India are massive scammers. Jaipur, India, is the cut stone capital of the world. Unfortunately, once they discovered Etsy, many of them are passing off resin as amber, Howlite as Turquoise, and so forth. I am very severe with them when I find out. Gemstones and jewelry must have the highest ethics and credibility. I have zero tolerance from scammers. Nepal is passing off massive resin balls as old Tibetan amber - yet another scam. Fortunately, amber is very easy to test with a blue light.
@@mjremy2605 Etsy has become the thorn in my side that never should have been. Wish it could return to how it was back in 2009
Taking a hair and stretching it tightly over the stone then putting the burning end of a cigarette on the hair will tell you-
If the hair singes and breaks, fake..
If the hair stays intact, real--
The stone absorbs the heat..
Excellent field test..
Learned it in Arizona at the mines...
I've heard this about jade too. Never tried it myself though.
We do this in Afghanistan too when testing fake from real gemstones.
I actually knew about all of these tests before I watched this video, but it's still interesting nonetheless. One thing I'd like to point out is that there is a lot of fake turquoise in the market, but there's also a lot of stabilized turquoise too. Natural, gem-quality turquoise is constantly becoming rarer, and the majority of turquoise you'll find in jewelry nowadays is stabilized. I think most people associate that as it being fake, but that's not the case. The stabilized turquoise you usually see in jewelry is mostly chalk turquoise, which is the most common type of turquoise that's found, and it's too soft to be used in jewelry unless it has been stabilized. I think it can be a good option for most people though because it's affordable, it still looks pretty nice (at least in my opinion), and it actually does have some benefits over natural turquoise. After stabilization, it does become much harder, and the process also prevents oils and things from penetrating the stone over time, so it will never change color, and it will never crumble. Natural turquoise can change color over time depending on what it comes in contact with. There's also the rarity factor of natural, gem-quality turquoise that makes it very difficult to find. I have a few pieces, and they were definitely not cheap... at all, so anything I'd actually wear would probably be stabilized simply because it can withstand daily life better, and it's much easier to find replacements if anything should happen to them.
Hi Steampunk, Thank you, you bring up a lot of good points, especially about how natural turquoise will change colors. This one little bit of trivia is one that escapes a lot of people as they assume a color change means their stone is a fake. I am certainly considering doing a follow up video about turquoise as this one has been more popular than I would have guessed.
The only thing I would add is that if the turquoise stones are smaller in sizes say like between 10mm -15mm you don't need to stabilize them...
Excellent info even in 2023. Thank you!
Yes. I got one in a flea market. It was real, untreated, 100% natural, so of course it was yellowish when I first saw it .
That test doesn't work, if it did, all my bought as howlite turquoise beads are actually turquoise 😅
I am currently on my sixth decade on this Earth 🌎 and as I have always said, “every single day you learn something new ”. Thank you for a great lesson of which firstly I’ll be passing on to my daughter who loves turquoise.👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
My pleasure, and thank you!
Yes DushessNanciAnn, I am right there w/ u on the decades & love learning, I'll also be sharing w/ my daughter.
wow me 2 ..feb 19 1962
Me too :)
science is truly unstoppable.
Great practical tests for turquoise, especially for the casual buyer.
Turquoise is one of the most difficult gemstones for a buyer to try to understand & identify, because so much of the value is based on its origin (mine name, lore) and many sellers are willing to attach false provenance. Turquoise has so much variation in matrix, color & stone features, that even with material from the same mine so can be really frustrating to quantify, that many consumers just rely on the honesty of a seller- which is not always warranted.
So having some simple tests that we can use to at least discern physical properties is extremely helpful. Thank you!
Well Spoken and excellent points all around, thanks for sharing!
I did the one thing you should never do which is buy turquoise off someone on the street. Someone on Facebook posted a Navajo silver ring with set turquoise and red coral which looked worn out heavily. I was mostly after the silver, which to my luck it actually was, and thanks to your video and others I was able to test both stones and they are also 100% real.
Thanks again for sharing this info!
For a bit I thought your story was going to end in tragedy... glad to hear it didn't and glad this helped :)
So if that's true turquoise it won't change color?
Thank you Austin for this excellent demonstration. I knew my stones were dyed Howlite because of the lighter color around the hole drilled in the bead.
That's another good tip you gave. So check the holes.
There's a lot of dyed Howlite coming from China.
Sir,
Your video helped me to identify a fake piece of turquoise using the Acetone test. All pieces passed the heat test.
That being said, I say the following out of love. Your video highlighted all real - non test failure - pieces except for where that one piece, from that $1.50 bag, where it failed the acetone test.
It's good to show BOTH modes - pass or fail for the viewer. I wanted to see a heat test failure.
Thank you again!
I admit, This video could improve by showing the hot needle test failure. Which is why I later made a second video showing what that looks like here: ua-cam.com/video/VJf6ibYIiTg/v-deo.htmlsi=JGW5X6xRXseatkYZ
@@earthartgems Sir, I thank you but literally minutes ago, I saw your posting "New Untestable Fake Turquoise" which, as I am watching it right now, covers all the things I had requested. I thank you so very much for your video's. Have a great day.
@@stephen6640 You're most welcome :) I feel like turquoise is one of those subjects that could easily fill dozens of videos :) I just keep adding more as I have time.
@@earthartgems Agreed and frankly you and I share the same sentiments about amber. I want to fashion some items with turquoise and will lean on your site to help guide me.
@@stephen6640 let me know if I can help. I have a few jewelry making classes on my channel as well if it helps.
After watching this video I was able to use this technique to test some recent purchases I made online that I was having some question about. Sure enough one of the pieces rubbed off blue dye, which was funny because as soon as it turned blue on my qtip the stone fell out of the setting. But what was nice was when I checked three other pieces I wasn’t sure about they were fine. Thank you for this wonderful tip. Now I know that there’s a pretty good way to test!
Glad to hear this was helpful. Thanks for letting me know :)
Finally a video that actually shows how to identify and test. Thanks buddy.
Thank you for this most helpful video. I recently ordered a few estate sterling pieces with turqouise. In the ad, they claimed it as faux turquoise, but i have my doubts, because you can tell these are quality pieces of jewelry and they even state on their site that not all pieces are tested. So i cant wait to receive them and do your tests on them. Either way, the sterling statement bracelets alone, along with the other pieces of jewelry were worth the price i paid 😊
It's always great when you're expecting a fake abut are rewarded with something real, I hope they are all real for you!
@@earthartgems Thank you!! ❤️
Thanks!! I am new to this, but I have always wanted to make some really cool guitar straps with some turquoise. I have been a guitar player for a million years, and about 14 years ago, I took a really nice suede guitar strap and glued on (with the correct glue from Michael's) Native American beads, and man, did it come out great! Anyway, I have a lot of really nice straps, suede and finished leather, and yesterday, I went to a yard sale and I bought a necklace with turquoise (I think) and I already cut the stones apart and taped them on the strap (upon the advice of my 17 year old son) to establish the correct placement before gluing it on and I can't believe I didn't think of that myself. so, man, it looks so beautiful, and I am going to take the strap out to my workshop and put it on the bench and glue the stones on tomorrow. I have been a professional guitar player for years, but I am a BEGINNER at turquoise. THANK YOU!!!!!!
Thank you Curtis, those guitar straps sound pretty cool!
The really old turquoise and silver jewelry was made from coin silver, rather than sterling, the fragility meant that fewer of these pieces survived intact, thus making for more authentic loose stones.
I have had several pieces of what I have though was turquoise for 30+ years. It looks a lot like your dyed howlite. The funny thing is I was planning on buying some white howlite for my collection. It turns out I might already have some! I am looking forward to testing it out now.
Twenty years ago we traveled around out West in the 4 corners area and met a Zuni native that made it his mission to educate people on the different types of turquoise and imitations. He didn't mind people at the tourist traps selling fake stuff, he did mind that it wasn't labeled as an imitation. He would show you the scratch test on fake stones. People would come into a Native Artisans shop and say they saw the same squash blossom neckless in a shop on Navahoe land for 1/3rd the price, not knowing the stones were not 100% turquoise. Some of the unscrupulous sellers sold imitation jewelry from Tiawon that was marked Zuni, they got around the law by naming a town in Tiawon Zuni so they could put their mark on it!
We found a Zuni collective that sold only original native-made jewelry and the Craftsman got a full 90% of the sales price, no price gouging, and guaranteed real stuff.
It is sad jut how prevalent this type of activity is. It gives the entire industry a bad name. I agree, there is plenty of room in the market for imitation turquoise or other man made stones. The importance is honesty at the sellers counter. Thanks for that little tidbit of history as well, I learned something today.
How can we tell quality of turquoise? I have a ton of inherited turquoise from my grandpa. He was pretty discerning with gemstones/minerals. Collected and dug up a lot of arrowheads at the Snake River too.
That's sort of something that is just learned over time after looking at a lot of pieces, looking at prices, working stones....
Can you believe it I must be the only woman who doesn't have nail polish remover!!!! But trust me next time I go out the door!!!! Mr. Moore thank you for this because I need to sell my stuff, matter of life or death, and this will help me in the long run. I have beads and cant tell if there real or not, usually I can with no problem but not these and wont try to sell them without knowing for sure I dont want to under sell for me or over sell for anyone else either. So thank you again. :)
I'm the lucky gardian of two gorgeous turquoises: one from Iran with pyrite, and a vintage sleeping beauty with an Amazing blue sky color.
Both naturals and non stabilized, I'm so glad!
I've got several stabilized pièces, but I don't feel their energy...
Thanks Lila! So glad you found this helpful :)
This was REALLY helpful! I just bought a ring used and it looked kind of too good - but now I know it at least wasn’t dyed! Thanks for doing this!!
Glad to hear it! You're welcome :)
Thank you so much for this video. Got a bunch of turquoise today that I haven’t yet paid for. I told the guy I wasn’t really into it and he kept pressing. A lot of the ones I tested with acetone today were dyed. Now I’m going to continue with the other tests
You're welcome! Glad this was helpful in spotting some dyed stones. If you're interested, I also have a few other follow up videos I did which might prove helpful, One I uploaded yesterday where I discuss a few man made stones I came across that do not respond to either test, so its worth a peek.
I bought a squash blossom necklace from a pawnshop in Placerville CA some years back. My Mom was with me and we asked if we could test the stones. They had no problem with our testing. We had a needle and a lighter and it was negative for plastic. Now I need to check to see if the color come off. Thanks for the information!
Thank you! I appreciate it. I definitely will check it out for the future but when I confronted him, he admitted that even the ones that didn’t fall the tests were completely fake. Really frustrating but I’m glad for the resource and that I knew there was a win the first place
My pleasure!
Yes, thanks! I’ve been collecting turquoise & silver jewellery for a few years. It’s nice to have some criteria as I look at stone in a shop. Luckily, I’ve been using a very reputable seller.
I have a few old pieces, I let my daughters and soon my GrandDaughter wear. It is the good stuff form the 1950's and I really enjoy family wearing it. Thanks for a good vid, do us some more.! I have been always into the pottery and have one two Grey Hills rug from early sixtys. Now have experts almost related to help me on rugs. My Grandson immediately knew I had Churro wool and showed me how to tell.
Liked! Bookmarked! Subscribed! And took notes even utilizing the comments. I have read so much about turquoise over the last 11 years attempting to classify my small collection. The quest to seek next is to determine glass from real turquoise. The stones in one necklace are heavy with a high gloss shine. Also alot of silver inclusions. Definitely not plastic. I suspect the stones are real simply because several other pieces of jewelry purchased in the lot are authenic.
Thanks! And I have to agree, some of the comments here are just as useful as the video itself!
Thank you for this info Austin! I have a question regarding the hot needle test. If a piece of genuine turquoise has been coated with a lacquer, wouldn’t the hot needle test make it seem like plastic? The heat would melt the lacquer or epoxy a little bit and give off a chemical smell. Isn’t that right? So how could you tell it’s just a coating & the stone isn’t actually plastic?
Thank you so much for your help!
That's a great point, I had not thought about this, thank you. There have been so many helpful and positive comments on this video I almost feel like a follow up is needed where I address all these questions. I suppose it certainly would give you a false reading. But lacquer coated turquois is not very common. When I have run across it, I generally was able to see if it was coated by looking at the back of the stone, where a lazy job means there is visible areas where the coating did not cover the stone and you can see the transition... This is very common on ammolite cabs.
Update: the stones I’ve tested so far with acetone nail polish remover are not showing ANY blue color…just a bit of dusty dirt that’s coming off. I may have a gemologist give it a look over if it’s not too expensive bc I just don’t know enough about selling turquoise. Thanks again!
Thanks so much! I’m a vintage reseller…mostly decorative collectibles and also some vintage costume jewelry. But sometimes I come across stones and 925 silver (not much real gold though) that is high quality and the real thing…mostly semi-precious if in stones and I want to become more knowledgeable. I also have a “turquoise” necklace that I bought for myself in a thrift store for just a few bucks and that I think I may sell IF it is REAL TURQUOISE. I’ve already scratched it (gently with the end of a small screwdriver) in an inconspicuous place and can’t seem to get it to scratch. I highly doubt that it is real, but I’m gonna do the acetone test to see what happens. I’ll update this comment to let you know what happened. Thanks again.
Hi Nancy, good luck! I hope it is real.
Yep…it’s looking good…see my update! 🙏
Thanks! My watch tips I bought has real turquoise! Can’t find a lighter to see if it has been treated but at least I know it passed the Acetone test! 🙌
Excellent information! Thank you for this great demo!!!
I had a house fire and it burned up my whole collection of Native American jewelry. I have a ring and a silver squash blossom necklace that I need to replace with turquoise stones. After Covid and lack of work, I don't have money any more. Any idea where I can go to get some blue green turquoise that I could shape and polish myself and reset in my old necklace? I would love to bring it back to life. That fire was devastating, it burned to the ground and I lost everything I ever had.
Ther are a few good places online. I look for sites that actually have a mine claim and are shipping from that area
@@earthartgems Good point, thank you!
Interesting video. I was also wondering if using an UV light might help to see if stones have resins or plastics. Usually these light up yellow under UV light and I found out that way I have a fake Sugilite.
great idea. I had not thought of that but yes, that would be a great test to do that is non-destructive and quick, could be done at gem shows and so on.
Awesome job explaining. Thanks for sharing. 👍🙌
These are all really good tips. I strongly suspect that I inherited a beautiful squash blossom necklace but the three turquoise stones that are set in the old-fashioned bezels might be stabilized turquoise. On one hand it’s still a beautiful piece of jewelry but on the other I want to know if it’s real turquoise or not for insurance purposes. I heard a rumor and I have heard from a couple of jewelers that back in the 60s and early 70s a lot of turquoise that made it into the American market came from China that was actually dyed Howlite
To me, dyed howlite is screamingly obvious. The lines are very different from what you'll see in genuine turquoise.
Holy flip!! I got chills, they're multiplying!!
Thanks for this. I have used the acetone test but not the hot soldering pick test before. I have a large amount of old mine stock Qingu rough turquoise and will be testing each piece before I sell it. I have cabbed quite a bit of it and know it to be naturally hard but double checking for resin will give me more peace of mind! Thank you.
Thanks! I agree, it is nice to at least have a better idea of what one is selling :)
@@earthartgems Yes exactly! The last thing I want to do is misrepresent anything to anyone! Thank you again, you now have a new subscriber!
@@GeoRockNerd thank you!
Is there an easy way to do the hot soldering trick without, well soldering? I have tried acetone trick and it passed! Buuut i really don't have the tools to test with soldering 😂
@@xenyadominguez8209 You just need a needle, some pliers to hold it and a lighter or gas stove top to heat the needle. I heat the needle for a few seconds and then touch the back of the piece with it immediately.
Thank you, I love Turquoise. The pieces you got are lovely.
Fascinating. I’ll be testing the turquoise I have (not much). I actually love howlite so I’m wondering if it’s possible to remove the dye and return it to it’s natural state? 🧐
Not sure, I've never tried... howlite is cheap enough I just buy it as I need it. But if you do try to remove the dye, let me know how it goes.
Really good and informative video. Thank you. Sonia
I loved watching you....I've been buying turquouse for 30 years. Thanks for the infirmation. What about amber?? How to tell real from fake?? Hot rod to test as well or what do you recommend??
Thanks
Kellie of Texas
Hi Kellie, Thank you! To answer your question about the hot needle test for amber: It does work, but in a different way: It will melt the amber regardless of if it is natural amber, or a resin. What it does is release a SMELL. Amber will of course smell pitchy and resin will have a very chemically scent. Be sure to test in a place that will be covered by a setting, or plan on re-polishing. Having piece of known resin and amber on hand to test helps so that you can learn what the smells should smell like- use as a control.
Hi! I tested an amber my late mum gave to me (she had worked in a jewelry store) with salt water; it will float to the top of a glass of water saturated with salt (I used sea salt). Blessed be🌹
@@tanrose8645 except some of the materials they make fake Amber out of also float in saltwater, like Copal and plastic
There's this place in my home town that sells turquoise it's owned by a Arabic the stones there looked sketchy but I just went ahead and bought a stone the only cost 13 dollars this video really helped thank you
बहुत महत्वपूर्ण, उपयोगी जानकारी दी आपने आपका बहुत बहुत धन्यवाद❤❤❤❤❤❤ मेरे पास भी कुछ पत्थर है मगर मैं उनको नहीं पहचान पा रहा कि वह कौन से है, क्या आप मेरी मदद करेंगे उनकी सही पहचान करने में..!??
Thanks for your comment. I doubt I'd be able to give you a 100 positive ID on your stones without seeing them in person. The heft, the feel the look of a stone in the hand tells you volumes about it and what it is.
So happy you put this video up, never would have though to test, these are easy excellent cheap @ home ways of checking. Thank you so much.
Just learned about testing with nail polish remover, and no dye came off. Am surprised, I didn't pay alot for the strand? Thank you, all this information is so fascinating!
I lived in Nevada many years ago and the native American at the turquoise shop showed me what to look for. Never put real turquoise in water ,over time it will turn green because of the copper content.
Yes, that is right! And is why a vintage ring with turquoise that was worn a lot will often be more green.
tshaffer9681, share the useful tips that nobody has mentioned.
Great simple to follow video, very useful, and many thanks for taking the time to share this knowledge.
Amazing! Thank you so much. Interesting and now I know more of these beautiful stones. Seems to what u have been showing here is the more flatter stones has a dark back and are real ones.. take care xxx
I have some pieces of rock I was told is turquoise, looks like right out of the ground how do I find out for sure. Biggest piece about 8-10" across.
These tests will work on rough stone just as well as cabochons and are great for preliminary at home testing. If you want a 100% iron clad assurance: Send it to the GIA or other respectable Lab or find a Graduate gemologist to ID it for you, provided they have the equipment necessary. They can run an analysis on it to check for any dyes or foreign materials/filler.
What a simple way of testing turquoise. I didnt know you could do this. Thanks for sharing! Next I need to figure out how to value them...what to pay for them.
Thanks for very useful information! I am wondering about UV light testing, does it also reveal fake or real?
I'm not sure. Not to my knowledge, but then again, I have not really tried it for turquoise, only other gems. But experimentation is always good to try!
Thanks very much for sharing! New Subscriber from Sierra NV.
I wonder if you can do the same thing with JADE [Nephrite & Jadeite] at home?
Not really sure... From what I know of most jade experts, they can identify based on the look, feel and heft, but do not really use any at-home tests. Just their many many years of experience.
Thank you, I Learned Something new.
Me too.
Thanks for an enlightening video. I didn't know this was such an issue. How predominant is this?
Among turquoise sellers, not a huge issue. But there are a ton, and I mean thousands of sellers that sell mostly beads and other cheaper imitation turquoise and often do not fully disclose the nature of the stone, or might only do so deep in the fine print.
the piece in the back whats that kind called ? its I the middle in the back farthest one out the biggest ..I have a bracelet with that stone .. ill make a video about all my pieces and post soon ... thanks I love turquoise
The generic term is called "Spiderweb" Turquoise. I'm not sure of the mine it came from
Hi Austin, this video is extremely helpful. I have a large unfinished cab that belonged to my friend’s father and want to refine it, but it looks stabilized. Does this mean that I can’t use my grinder without gumming up the wheels? I may try a Nova point in my flex shaft first….
I've cut both stabilized and unstabilized on my Genie. As long as you have water coolant running over he wheels you'll be fine. It might just need more water than normal to wash it off, but it will not ruin the nova wheels or diamond grinding wheels.
@@earthartgems Thanks! I ended up doing that. I got no reaction with either test in the video. Looks like the real deal but I don’t know if stabilized stone would react quickly to the hot pick. If it’s real, it looks like Morenci, and the pyrite wasn’t falling out so I’m thinking it’s stabilized.
@@donnaer Probably, but still a good find. Stabilized turquoise is so common that it is still considered acceptable among the trade as long as that treatment is disclosed along the line of buyers.
@@earthartgems Thanks, I’m pretty excited. The provenance isn’t really clear but it’s going to stay in my friends family.
@@donnaer Glad I was able to help out :)
I resell jewelry, and have seen how easy it is to get duped if you don't know how to spot fakes. Great info, thanks!
Thank you so much for this information. Years ago I bought some big turquoise nuggets but was worried they might not be real. Now I know how to test them. Yay!
Were they real?
Thanks Austin I Love the stone
thank you for your informative video.. just curious, would the acetone hurt the natural turquoise? I would think you would rinse it after the testing
No harm in my experience, but rinsing afterwardsis a good idea :)
Thank you for an informative, concise and thorough explanation.
Kingman, Arizona - this is the STORE for some of the most fantastic turquoise stones - raw stones or polished turquoise jewelry. You must go there. A+ merchandise.
does mineral spirits work or does it have to be acetone?
I'm actually working on a new video to test this out. I'm just trying to get some pieces to test on. Interestingly enough, there is new turquoise on the market, that is lab created, that will pass both these tests but it is not real, so I am also trying to determine a test for those. Stay tuned for a future update on that.... the gem world is ever changing.
I'm glad I came across this video. I learned alot, I Hve alot of stones and I can see that a few has been painted even though I didn't test them like you did. But looking at them and feeling them I see what's real and what's not real. But it is good to give them all a test. Very interesting video thank you.❤😊
You're welcome! I am glad that it was helpful :)
Thank you for sharing this informative video.
You're welcome, glad you found it helpful
Thank you Austin, very helpful. Do I assume that to clean turquoise we should use acetone, or it would ruin it? If that’s not the case, can you share how to clean real natural turquoise? Thank you again!
I will generally use something a little milder, like rubbing alcohol or even just vodka (We keep a cheap bottle around for cleaning with). but for the most part, if a stone is dirty, just warm water and a towel will be all it needs. try to avoid harsher chemicals, and soap. Never use bleach. Bleach will also cause gold and silver to become brittle as well as damage some gemstones. Some turquoise, will age over time (darken and sometimes turn greener). I'd like to do a video on this some day as well. I just need to get some older turquoise rings.
@@earthartgems thank you Austin! Looking forward to your next video.
@Austin Moore I read on a turquoise forum that one guy would test his turquoise by putting it in distilled water over night. The idea is that natural will change color after being submerged in distilled water for a while, and the stabilized turquoise will not change at all since epoxy or resin is occupying the pores in the stone. I recently purchased some sleeping beauty beads and have been testing them to see whether they are natural or not. Hot needle test came back good for natural with no smell, smoke, or markings. I soaked my stones for about 20 min and noticed small bubbles exiting the stone but no color change (I didn't soak very long). Do you have any thoughts
Hi Johnathan, I've never heard of this or tried it. That said, it doesn't mean it is not true. Still, I am not sure what would cause the turquoise to change color in distilled water. Seeing small bubbles escape the stones would suggest that they are a tiny bit porous and thus, not stabilized. At least that is my guess. One thing to note is that a lot of turquoise is stabilized, but this does not mean it is fake.
Thank you so much for sharing this with us. I really appreciate it very much. Awesome. ❤ Also, BTW, I LOVE YOUR ETHICS. ❤️👍🏼😉
Thank you, and you're very welcome, I am glad it was helpful!
Hello Austin. The other day I purchased a 48" long Turquoise nugget necklace from a thrift store. There was hand knotting between the stones. Cost $16.99. My first reaction was “If it’s too good to be true, it probably isn’t.”
So I tested it with Acetone and it passed that test. And it passed the red hot needle test too. So what gives? How did it pass?*** It absolutely is magnesite, absolutely. I tried so hard to talk myself into it being ‘authentic’ but something just bugged me. So I conducted even more online research and found some magnesite whose matrix patterns matched exactly my necklace; even the shape of the nuggets.
The color they did brilliantly; near Sleeping Beauty color and the fake stones match other real Turquoise I own. I mean in the end, magnesite is after all a naturally occurring mineral in the world. It just isn’t turquoise!
Oh ***, on a whim I tested another necklace purchased in Chicago around 1984 while travelling on a business trip. It’s is nuggets and heishi. That piece passed the test as well. These stones are highly polished and are super hard. The confusing part is that these nuggets have spots on a couple of stones that look like it’s a glop of dried epoxy. Again, a mystery. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm If you read this I'd appreciate your thoughts. Thanks...
~~Maureen
Hi Maureen, Indeed that is interesting. Perhaps the dyes used in that era where just of better quality, or maybe once the dyes has set within the stone for a certain amount of time it will no longer leech off. I can only speculate on that. I can say that the last test that I did not perform in this vide is the crush test. You simply pull off a bead, smash it with a hammer and see what the inside looks like. dyes typically have a hard time penetrating all the way into the stone. Having been doing jewelry work for the better part of two decades, I am constantly surprised to learn that often I do not know what I do not know. There are always going to be outliers to every rule of thumb. Always looking to learn more!
Спасибо! Очень наглядно объяснили и показали, удачи Вам!
Спасибо! Добро пожаловать. Рад, что это было полезно!
Thanks was always curious, how about white turquoise?
Or Persian turquoise.
Howlite is white correct? How would you know white turquoise vs howlite?
Does a stone with more matrix less valuable? Personally I don’t mind a variety.
Howlite is white in its natural form. It also typically form in clusters/nodules, similar to cauliflower. it is not the same as "white turquoise". And on that note, white turquoise is technically not turquoise as it lacks the copper ingredient in the physical make up to be classified as actual turquoise. It just has that name because the veining can sometimes look similar to turquoise. It is actually dolomite. It is currently only found in Nevada. This is also different than magnesite, another common howlite imitation. So in summary, howlite, mangesite and dolomite are all white with black veining, but are three different minerals. This video does not really cover those but they can be differentiated easily with a hardness scratch test. Dolomite is the hardest of the three with a hardness of about 5. The other two range from about 3-4.
@@earthartgems
I was recently looking at turquoise jewelry and a few were described as white turquoise. As I have never heard of this it led me to start learning.
A bit of an oxymoron.
Thanks
@@None-685 You bet! It cna be confusing at times. For a long time I thought it was real turquoise too.
non video related question. what polisher and grinder would you recommend as i’m looking to a good quality one. btw the video video was great and helpful.
If you're looking to polish cabochons at home and you want a quality machine, check out Diamond Pacific. They have several good quality set ups that will take you from rough to polished cab.
Austin Moore ok thanks for the advice
@@geeknerd3428 certainly :) there are other good machines out there too. Such as the Cab King by Kingsley North
Great at home tests idea! Thank you!
Excellent information! I learned a lot with your video! Thank you !
You're welcome!
Thanks for the tips. I bought a necklace with a small piece of turquoise on it. Gonna test it like you did. Hope it's real fingers 🤞
After doing the acetone test should you be cleaning the acetone off the turquoise or no not necessary?
Probably better to clean it than not, although it tends to evaporate pretty quick.
I've heard a silversmith say they specifically buy turquoise with backing because the backing is supposed to help absorb shock and protect the stone from shattering if a piece is dropped. She makes videos on how to make silver jewelry. Do you think she is incorrect?
She is correct. The backing is often a softer material and does absorb some shock. I've also heard some silversmiths will stick cardboard or even sawdust behind their cabs to provide a shock cushion. I am happy to use turquoise with, or without backing. I also teach classes online (you can see my free classes in my channel). I've been making jewelry for about 15 years and if I've learned one thing: it's that there are a lot of different ways to do things, and most of them are correct.
@@earthartgems Thanks for the explanation! I took 3 silversmithing classes in the 90s in highschool and have suddenly been drawn to get back into things. I have a lot to learn! I will definitely check out your classes! I'm trying to make a basic set up to work at home so I can get back into things. I just bought a butane torch. So glad those are option now!
Thanks for your explanation about testing turquoise. Your video is super helpful! New subscriber :)
@@mskinetik Thanks! Yeah, its a very fun thing to do, be it a hobby or profession. My classes basically start at the beginning and build on concepts over time. Here is a link to the first class: ua-cam.com/video/DeQrovic2t0/v-deo.htmlsi=Cc2k27qUtTtkFs1v I have a playlist for the first series. I'll be creating the next series over the next few months.
Very useful information. THANKYOU
You're welcome!
Future video: Can you discuss tumbling the dye off. Or the backing or remove the stabilizing in a tumbler?????
That would make a great video! My guess is it depends on how thick the dye is and how long you tumble it. But I'm thinking this would be easy to test with some off that classic dyed howlite.
I lived by a Navajo reservation growing up in the 60’s, mom bought a lot of turquoise jewelry at the trading post and on the reservation. One bracelet is silver with white turquoise. We were told the less black veins the more it was worth.
Thanks Diana, Always nice to hear from someone close to the source :)
@@earthartgems
Have you heard of the white turquoise?
@@dianakidd4219 Yes, I've heard of it. However I do not have much experience with it.
Hello again. Thanks for your note. I was wondering if you'd like to receive two images of jewelry, (to be used with your teaching), that show just how well magnesite can be doctored to look like real turquoise? Let me know. Unfortunately I am unable to attach anything from here. ~~Maureen
Sure, feel free to email me from my website: earthartgems.com/pages/contact-us
Excellent video!
Thank you!
I carved 2000 owl fetishes this out of stabilized block… I have to check my turq out now and then . This is good vid. I don’t sell howlite fetishes
Great video! It's very hard to tell whether the turquoise is stabilized or natural unless you have the expensive machine (EDXRF spectroscopy)
Do you know any other way to tell the stabilized turquoise?
Not that I've come across myself. A lot of natural turquoise is stabilized and from some mines, it all is, so its considered normal. Mostly, I just like to check for dye and to make sure it is not made from resin or other synthetics.
Thank you! Great demo! Testing my stash! TFS
@austinmoore if its black ive heard it could be shoe polish used to imitate matrix
Hey, thanks! That is a new one for me. I've not heard of that so that's a good tip.
Thank you for demonstrating the process.
You're welcome :)
Great information. Thank you!
How do you distinguish White Howlite from Magnesite? I've always thought that Howlite is white with grey veins and Magnesite is white with brownish veins. But I don't know if that is correct. Thanks for this video! Anne
Hi Anne, I believe this thread on Geologyonline .com will answer that question for you: www.gemologyonline.com/Forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=18635
Hi! I realize this was posted 2 years ago but if you are available I wonder if you’ve ever used a presidium II? I just tested a Turquiose necklace with the acetone test and it’s Turquiose. I used the presidium and it came up topaz. It’s confusing the machine? I literally just received the machine a few hours ago
The Presidium machines are pretty fickle. They work OK for some materials, but are not going to give you a definitive result for any gemstone material. I do not use them as I have not found them to be reliable enough for me to trust if I want to identify a gem and then be 100% certain that is what I have when I go to sell it to a customer. It is really more to give you a rough idea of what a stone might, or might not be. As you may have noticed, a lot of the gems overlap on the dial so most of the time the results are non-conclusive. It is also not meant to test turquoise. For some things, like if you are trying to determine if a red stone is a garnet or a ruby then it will work well enough as those two stones have a very different thermal properties. But even after making that determination, a second test would be ideal to confirm. Generally in the GIA (and what they teach their students), two tests are needed to confirm any material. Sometimes 3 or 4.
Great info!!!! Thanks for sharing!!
the first piece you showed in video whats that kind called ?
How can we test stones at a show?
Is turquoise from other countries less valuable ? Is there a way to test stones to see where they originate from?
Thank you for your hei
The simple answer is you cant. When I buy at a show, I am looking at a stone with years of experience handling turquoise and other gems and so I've got an eye for what is real and what is not. Anyone can do this, it just takes time and practice. And I don't have a 100% success rate, I hate to take my buys home and check them and occasionally something will have snuck past my initial screening. When in doubt, I leave it. Ask lots of questions, and work with dealers that you trust and that you also have a way of contacting after the show (as in, they have a legit business, a website or a store or at least give out their phone number and show schedule).
Thank you for great explanation on how to detect fake turquoise. I have added testing some of my jewelry to my list tomorrow.
Thank you for sharing this information!!
Are there specific tests (other than heat & acetone) for gaspeite?
Also, are there quick tests for natural stone that can be done on the spot when I'm at a sale?
I'm not very familiar with gaspeite, so I cant say. Maybe others in the community can answer this? as far as other quick tests which are non-destructive... I have just learned to feel the stone, the weight and the coolness and its overall look and veining.
Im curious, would you still use the stones from the smaller bag that was $1.50 for something or toss them?
I gave them away with the knowledge of what they are. Still useful for some folks
This video was so helpful!
Thank you for a most informative tutorial.
If i have a dyed howlite and use the acetone test, will i damage it? I want to be able to sell it as dyed howlite. Thanks
Yes, it removes or dulls the color in the howlite, so I'd either test the back of the stone, or if you have a larger parcel, just test one or two pieces.
Great Video. Very well Done And Informative...
Thanks Emily!
What does stabilized mean in reference to turquoise?
it is natural turquoise that has had some kind of liquid hardener added, typically a resin or epoxy or plastic, which is then pushed into the stone through vacuum pressure and cured to harden and stabilize the turquoise, which might have otherwise been too soft or brittle to use in jewelry. Depending on what type of stabilizer is used depends on how it is done. typically this is done before the stones are cut into cabochons.
Thanks a lot! You have cleared my doubts!
You're very welcome :)