9 Ways to Tell if turquoise is Real

Low-quality turquoise is often impregnated with resin to enhance color, luster, and stability, known as "Stabilized Turquoise." Although priced lower than natural turquoise, it's not fake. Some prefer its color stability over natural turquoise, which can discolor from skin oils. The current market is flooded with numerous turquoise imitations, including dyed Howlite, dyed Magnesite, Glass, plastic, and minerals like Variscite and Chrysocolla occasionally mistaken for turquoise. Two of the most perplexing products are reconstituted turquoise and lab-created turquoise. The former involves crushing low-quality turquoise into powder, mixing it with resin and dye, raising authenticity doubts. The latter, synthesized by Gilson company, is considered genuine but priced much lower than natural turquoise. Here are some handy tips to help you initially discern the authenticity of turquoise.

Most of today's Turquoise trade originates from the United States and China, with production also found in countries like Iran, Mexico, and Australia. It's worth noting that what's labeled as "African Turquoise" is often not real Turquoise but a dioritic rock intergrown with chrysocolla.

Real: Real Turquoise typically appears in shades of sky-blue, blue-green, or apple-green with brown or black impurities. Natural Turquoise often exhibits rich color variations within a single stone.

Fake: Fake Turquoise made from artificial materials often exhibits a more uniform color. Furthermore, some Turquoises in the market may surprisingly appear in colors such as white, red, purple, yellow, or indigo blue, which are evidently fake.

Real: Real Turquoise is typically opaque and does not allow light to pass through when illuminated with a flashlight.

Fake: If a Turquoise allows slight light to pass through when illuminated with a flashlight, it is likely not real Turquoise, but rather an imitation such as glass, plastic, or variscite.

Real: Real Turquoise often contains brownish or black veins of matrix running through it.

Fake: Fake Turquoise made from dyed howlite or dyed magnesite often exhibits gray veins, which you don't typically see in real Turquoise. In addition, some fake Turquoises may have artificially created brown or black veins, but these man-made veins often appear uniform in thickness, very unnatural, and stiff.

Under bright lighting, carefully observe the cracks and grooves on the stone. Dye used on fake Turquoise often concentrates in these areas. Sometimes, you may even find white areas on fake Turquoise where dye has not been absorbed.

The density of plastic is much lower than that of Turquoise. When held in the hand, fake Turquoise made of plastic will feel noticeably light and airy in comparison.

Real: Real Turquoise cannot be scratched by your fingernail or a copper penny.

Fake: If a Turquoise can be scratched by a copper penny or even your fingernail, you should start doubting its authenticity.

Real: Rubbing the real Turquoise with nail polish remover (acetone) won't cause the stone to fade.

Fake: Swabbing the dyed fakes with a Q-tip and some nail polish remover (acetone) might cause the stone to fade.

Fake Turquoise made from dyed howlite or variscite typically appears pinkish to red under the Chelsea filter, serving as a clear indicator of its inauthenticity.