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Turquoise Quality?


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I've been sorting silver, and thought I'd ask about this vintage sterling silver Turquoise cuff bracelet.  This came from a local estate, and I'm wondering how can I determine if the Turquoise is high quality, or run of the mill tourist grade?

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TIA!

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Very nice item that you have and the workmanship is very good. The Turquoise is a very good piece, it shows all the correct attributes of a high quality stone with the cracks and other minerals that it should.

The bracelet looks to be from about 60 years to 75 years old. It is in great condition and will gain value over time if taken care of properly.

Great find.

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Look for a makers mark and see if you can find out who made the bracelet. This can add value and interest in the history of the piece and i would say the bracelet is around forty to fifty years old, beautiful one thanks for sharing.

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As 2Valen says the Turquoise appears to be of very good quality.  Quality Turquoise has a high luster due to its hardness, deep coloration and is often enhanced by the inclusions in the material.  Its difficult to tell if that's native or treated Turquoise, is suspect native given its potential age, but treated Turquoise can be differentiated by a jeweler.  Nice piece hope you can narrow down the time frame and maker.

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I agree.  It looks like a good stone.   Very nice piece of wearable silver.

HH
Mike

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13 hours ago, 2Valen said:

Very nice item that you have and the workmanship is very good. The Turquoise is a very good piece, it shows all the correct attributes of a high quality stone with the cracks and other minerals that it should.

The bracelet looks to be from about 60 years to 75 years old. It is in great condition and will gain value over time if taken care of properly.

Great find.

Thanks!  I'm thinking just given it's provenance that it's at least 50 years old.

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6 hours ago, Hardtimehermit said:

Look for a makers mark and see if you can find out who made the bracelet. This can add value and interest in the history of the piece and i would say the bracelet is around forty to fifty years old, beautiful one thanks for sharing.

I checked, it says 925 Sterling and that's it.  Thanks for looking!

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3 hours ago, Tom Slick said:

Brian,

 Send it to me and I'll get it checked out for you. Then I'll let you know next time I see you, probably near Labor Day. 😁

You probably do have some good Turquoise shops in your area.

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Brian,

         I've been dealing in turquoise and silver since the 70's boom years and would say that the bracelet is nothing special--a very commercial Navajo product, but the stone looks to be a high-grade Nevada stone with a crack or a chip out of it. Can't identify the mine as there are many that have the black & blue combination. It seems that the eBay asking prices for Native American  jewelry has really increased recently. Scarcity? Most of the so-called 'vintage' NA jewelry is mediocre in execution, made by piece-makers for commercial dealers.

          Joel

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