Turquoise Birthstone for December

Originally uploaded by facetssrilanka.
Turquoise is the birthstone for December and December is the lucky month with three official birthstones - turquoise, blue topaz and tanzanite, one of the newest natural gems to be discovered. According to its history, tanzanite was discovered in Tanzania in 1967 when Masai cattle herders noticed the sparkling blue gems in an area of forest that had burned after a lightning strike. As such, tanzanite has little of the long history and folklore attached to it that older gems have.

It is generally accepted that turquoise gets its name from “pierre turquoise” a French phrase meaning “Turkish stone.” Others believe that the name comes from the Persian word “fiouze,” meaning the color turquoise. Ancient and yet always at the height of current fashion, turquoise was mined by early Egyptians as early as 6000 BC.

Many people are surprised to learn that the finest turquoise comes from Iran, not the American Southwest. However beautiful specimens are also found in Arizona and New Mexico in the United States, as well as in Australia, Afghanistan and other localities in the Middle East.

December’s traditional birthstone, the turquoise has been mined for centuries in the Americas and Asia. Native American mined turquoise in the Southwest with wooden mallets, and still create some of the most stunning pieces of silver and turquoise jewelry found anywhere. Today’s turquoise is as likely to come from China, where modern mining methods are making it possible to import tons of medium quality stone - which is what most turquoise is. According to experts, high quality turquoise is rarer than diamonds and other precious gems.