Category Archives: depleted

This is a fabulous vintage Navajo two stone silver ring. This ring contains amazing old natural patina with a center coral and two Morenci turquoise stones situated in the large oval shaped face of the ring. The turquoise appears to be from the Morenci turquoise mine. Accenting the stones are stunning silver rope and a handstamped cold chiseled silver work. The ring contains a marvelous sturdy double silver shank. The stones measure around The ring face measures around 1″½ x1″inch The ring size is around 6. No marks but tested as Sterling silver. Sturdy 9.6grams Cir Mid Century. This unique ring has a stamping design referred to as “cold chisel”. The process entails hammering the silver with a metal chisel without the silver being pre-heated to make it softer. Stamping silver with doing this is much more difficult and requires a higher skill level. Morenci Turquoise comes from the Morenci Mine in South-eastern Arizona. This mine was the largest copper mine in the USA and its primary purpose was originally the production of copper in 1894. Turquoise is a common occurrence in copper mines, and it is here that the beautiful Morenci Turquoise was first discovered. Sadly, the Morenci Mine ceased Morenci Turquoise production in the 1970s. This has meant there has been a large reduction in Morenci Turquoise production since this time. Much of the Morenci Turquoise that is still available today had been mined before this era. Morenci Turquoise is very rare. It is becoming increasingly more difficult to source this stone, so authentic Morenci Turquoise is often hard to come by. The Arizonian mine that once produced Morenci Turquoise is now depleted, which means it is no longer producing this stunning stone. Because of this, Morenci Turquoise is both rare and valuable.