Turquoise

“ TURQUOISE. The beautiful light blue substances that are called turquoises have usually been considered as the bones or teeth of animals, impregnated with blue oxide (21) of copper; but they are sometimes found in nodules which are certainly not of an osseous nature.
Turquoises are frequently set in rings, necklaces, brooches, and other female ornaments. In Persia they are very common; and, amongst the Turks, are held in such estimation that persons of rank almost constantly wear them in some part of their dress, as ring-stones, 190and to adorn the handles of stilettoes. ”

“ The most valued tint of the turquoise is a delicate blue, inclining slightly to green; in many specimens the green becomes more pronounced with age. Although the turquoise is practically opaque, sections may be ground so thin as to admit of examination by transmitted light. ”

“ I own a turquoise myself, which I am sure changes color, sometimes looking green, and sometimes blue. This change of color gave rise to the belief that the color of a turquoise varied with the health of the wearer, being blue when the wearer was in good health, and white or green in case of ill-health. The emerald is said to be the symbol of jealousy, — 'the green-eyed monster.' For this reason it is not considered as being suitable for an engagement-ring. ”

“ For the blossoms that stood isolated, far removed from the stalk, he used an ashen blue, rejecting, however, definitely the Oriental turquoise that is used for brooches and rings, and which, along with the commonplace pearl and the odious coral form the delight of vulgar souls ”

“ The Apache name for the turquoise is duklij, which114 signifies either a green or a blue stone, no distinction being made between the two colors. This stone is highly prized for its talismanic virtues. Indeed the possession of a turquoise was indispensable for a medicine-man, as without it he would not receive proper recognition. That some of the powers of the thunder-stone were ascribed to the turquoise by the tribes appears from the fancy that a man who could go to the end of a rainbow after a storm and search in the damp earth would find a turquoise. ”

“ For it was a "sky-blue" stone; a sky-blue, sacred stone; a sky-blue, sacred, Persian stone. That at once gives us its name—it was a turquoise. But can the turquoise, to the certain knowledge of a mediaeval writer, "chaunges dre"? Let us turn for light to old Anselm de Boot: that is he in pig-skin on the shelf behind the bronze Hera.'
I handed the volume to Zaleski. He pointed to a passage which read as follows:
'Assuredly the turquoise doth possess a soul more intelligent than that of man. ”

“ In the pyramids of Egypt, in the Aztec tombs, in the mounds of Mexico, jewels and beads of turquoise abound.
At the beginning of life in this world, too, the turquoise is welcomed; there is still no better good-luck gift to a newborn child than a necklace of turquoise beads. It is significant that December is the birth month of the Holy Child, for whose nativity the gifts no doubt included turquoise. ”

“ The talismanic power of the turquoise is still credited in provincial England, for in the counties of Hampshire and Sussex it is believed that when two persons station themselves 370on opposite banks of a frozen stream or pond, on a Christmas Day, and each one slides a turquoise to the other over the ice, both of them will be blessed with good fortune for the following year and will prosper in all their undertakings. ”

“ The turquoise is perhaps the favored of precious stones for this purpose. The old Persian proverb says that “He that hath a turquoise hath a friend.” Its known power of turning pale under certain climatic influences has invested it in story with the power of not only warding off evil influences, rendering its wearer constant and assuring success in love, but still more of revealing by a certain pallor of coloring, coming danger or the existence of inconstancy in its wearer. It is also said that in case of a fall the turquoise takes all injury upon itself ”

“ And here it becomes necessary to say a word as to some of the achievements in colour of this firm. Of these, a new turquoise (which Messrs. Copeland have christened “Cerulean blue”) is the richest and fullest produced, and is remarkable for its brilliant intensity; the Sardinian green is also very good, and the vermilion finer and more rich than has at any time, or in any place, so far as my experience goes, been produced. ”

“ The typical colour is a delicate sky-blue, but the blue passes by every transition into green. In some cases the colour deteriorates as the stone becomes dry, and may be seriously affected by exposure to sunlight; whilst with age there is often a tendency to become green, as seen in examples of ancient turquoise. The mineral is always opaque in mass, but generally translucent in thin splinters. Turquoise takes a fair polish, but the lustre is feeble, and inclines to be waxy ”

“ But we cannot be wholly sure of the presence of Angels in precious stones. I do rather opine that the evil spirit doth take up his abode therein, transforming himself into an angel of light, to the end that we put our trust not in God, but in the precious stone; and thus, perhaps, doth he deceive our spirits by the turquoise: for the turquoise is of two sorts: those which keep their colour, and those which lose it.' [1]
[1] 'Assurément la turquoise a une âme plus intelligente que l'âme de l'homme. ”

“ The turquoise is a hydrous phosphate of aluminum, with a little copper or iron determining its color, from sky blue to greenish grey. It is best when a rich green-blue. The stone is rather soft and is cut cabochon. Like the opal, it absorbs grease and dirt and may grow dull. Over-exposure to strong light will cause it to fade. ”

“ On the edge of the prairie, where the sun had gone down, the sky was turquoise blue, like a lake, with gold light throbbing in it. Higher up, in the utter clarity of the western slope, the evening star hung like a lamp suspended by silver chains—like the lamp engraved upon the title-page of old Latin texts, which is always appearing in new heavens, and waking new desires in men. ”

“ The colour most prized is the deep blue of the sky. A small speck of a lighter colour, which only connoisseurs can distinguish, or an almost unappreciable tinge of green, decreases the value considerably. Then there is that undefinable property of a good turquoise, the zât, something like the “water” of a diamond or the lustre of a pearl; a fine coloured turquoise without the zât is not worth much.’ He subsequently adds: ‘The above-mentioned three hundred pounds Meshed turquoise was bought from the finder by one of the Rish-i-Safîds (elders of the village) for three pounds ”

“ The khaki, or earthy turquoises, are found in the valley adjoining the hills, in a soil composed of gravel and rounded stones resting on a clay subsoil. After the earth has passed through two or three washings, a considerable number of turquoises are left, of moderate size, but pale and of little value, if the diggings are fresh. The turquoises in the older pits have a better color, because, the miners say, the stones acquire their color with age. ”

“ Further, it is lighter than true Turquois and does not give a blue color with ammonia when dissolved in hydrochloric acid, as does true turquois.
The finest Turquoises have long come from Persia, from a locality not far from Nishapur, in the province of Khorassan. Here the mineral occurs in narrow seams in the brecciated portions of a porphyritic trachyte and the surrounding clay slate. There are several hundred mines in the region and the entire population of the town of Maaden derives its livelihood from mining and cutting the stones. ”

“ The hardness of the turquois is 6., specific gravity 2.6 to 2.8, lustre waxy, and condition opaque to slightly translucent. [Pg 61]
Before the reducing flame of the blow-pipe, the turquois does not melt, but becomes brown and colors the flame green. With borax and salts of phosphorus the turquois melts to a clear glass, while it is also soluble in hydrochloric acid. Oriental or mineral turquois is composed of:
The best color is a clear deep sky-blue, and in the true turquois this color improves by artificial light ”

“ Before I had walked two miles, already all around me, over the wide dew-drenched prairie, and in front from forest to forest, where the hills were growing green again, and behind, over the long dusty road and the sparkling bushes, flushed with the red glow, and the river faintly blue now under the lifting mist, flowed fresh streams of burning light, first pink, then red and golden. . . . All things began to stir, to awaken, to sing, to flutter, to speak. On all sides thick drops of dew sparkled in glittering diamonds ”

“ When a turkey falls, or a fish is drawn from the river, or the tiger skin is taken, they are tossed to the woman, who lugs them along with her pot until they encamp for the night, when she builds a fire, cooks the game, and all seat themselves in a ring and feast, after starving a day and a half. Should it rain, a few, large green leaves are spread upon some branches of bushes, sloped on the weather side of a ridge-pole, supported by two forked stakes. ”

“ Many sluggish flat-boats we overtook and passed: some laden with produce from the different head-waters of the small rivers that pour their tributary streams into the Ohio; others, of less dimensions, crowded with emigrants from distant parts, in search of a new home. Purer pleasures I never felt; nor have you, reader, I ween, unless indeed you have felt the like, and in such company.
The margins of the shores and of the river were at this season amply supplied with game. A Wild Turkey, a Grouse, or a Blue-winged Teal, could be procured in a few moments ”

“ There are two species of wild turkey in America, one native to the United States and Mexico and one found in Central America. The latter is somewhat smaller than our home bird but is finer in color, its feathers being of a beautiful metallic-green or bronze color, with hues of black, gold and sky color. The male turkey has a habit much like that of the peacock. He spreads his large tail upward like a fan, while his wings are made to trail on the ground. ”

“ All around was golden green, all—trees, bushes, grass—shone and stirred gently in wide waves under the soft breath of the warm wind; from all sides flooded the endless trilling music of the larks; the peewits were calling as they hovered over the low-lying meadows, or noiselessly ran over the tussocks of grass; the rooks strutted among the half-grown short spring-corn, standing out black against its tender green ”

“ The stone that they call round turquois is not very hard, so they have no need of emery to scrape, facet, smooth, or polish, for they apply to it the bamboo, then it receives its radiant luster and brilliancy. ”

“ A good thing is the wild turkey, but even a better thing, when his numbers and quality are considered, is the ruffed grouse, the partridge of the North, the pheasant of the South. How, in the lake region, he dawdles among the low-land thornberry bushes in autumn, how he knows of many things to eat beside the thorn-apples, and how plump he gets, and how cunning! How watchful he is, how knowing of covert, and with what a burst he lifts himself from his hiding-place and whirls away between the tree-trunks! ”

“ This is the time to be in the depths of the forest in quest of the wild turkey, and one should be near their roosting place if possible, quietly listening and watching every sound and motion. If in the autumn or winter you are near such a place, you are likely to hear, as day breaks, the awakening cluck at long intervals; then will follow the long, gentle, quavering call or yelp of the mother hen, arousing her sleeping brood and making known to them that the time has arrived for leaving their roosts. If in the early spring, you will listen for the salutation of the old gobbler. ”

“ Another example of the use of turquois as an inlay is supposed to be unique. Many years ago we obtained from Don Francisco Belmar a beautiful tripod vessel supporting against the side a polychrome human figure in the round, representing the god Macuilxochitl, god of dance and sport—the deity represented with the painted design around the mouth. ”

“ But turkeys are hard to drive from their haunts, even by high waters, and more often than not they will stubbornly remain in the immediate locality of their favorite swamps and river bottoms by taking to the trees until the waters have subsided; they will persistently remain in the trees even for two or three months, with the water five to twenty-five feet in depth beneath them. At such times they subsist upon the green buds of the trees upon which they perch, and the few grapes and berry seeds that may remain attached to the vines which they can reach from the limbs. ”

“ Length nine inches, with the tail, which is near four inches and a half; the upper part of the plumage olive green, not so bright as is usual in this tribe; the front of the head is a most brilliant turcosine blue, which spreads on the cheeks, nearly to the ears, and then mixes with the green ”

“ In place of the deep summer-green of the herbage and fern, many rich colours play into each other over the surface of the mountains; turf (the tints of which are interchangeably tawny-green, olive, and brown) , beds of withered fern, and grey rocks, being harmoniously blended together. The mosses and lichens are never so fresh and flourishing as in winter, if it be not a season of frost; and their minute beauties prodigally adorn the foreground. ”

“ Second, that the wild turkey bred in domestication changes its form and the color of its plumage and of its legs, each succeeding generation degenerating more and more from these brilliant colors which are so constant on the wild turkey of the forest, so that it is simply a question of time—and indeed a very short time—when they will lose all of their native wildness and become clothed in all the varied colors of the common domestic turkey; in fact be like our domestic turkey,—yes, be our domestic turkey. ”