This page is nowhere complete.  I will be adding many more descriptions/histories soon! 

 Turquoise

When turquoise first came to the attention of man is unknown. We have archeological as well as literary references that pre date the Christian era by five millennia. The four bracelets of Queen Zar, found on her mummified arm, date to the second ruler of the Egypt's First Dynasty, approximately 5500 BC. Turquoise was used for beads by the Egyptians. Combined with other ornamental stones, the turquoise was inlaid in gold by Sumerians and Egyptians to produce very sophisticated articles of Jewelry.
 
 The name "Turquoise"may have come from the word Turquie, French for Turkey, because of the early belief that the mineral came from that country (the turquoise most likely came from Alimersai Mountain in Persia (now Iran) or the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt, two of the world's oldest known turquoise mining areas.) Another possibility could be the name came from the French description of the gemstone, "pierre turquin" meaning dark blue stone. 

Generally, the more copper in the molecular structure the bluer the turquoise. The introduction of iron causes the greener cast to the stone. Turquoise creation is affected by many other factors too. For example; the best, hardest turquoise is found within 100 feet of the earth's surface 

Agate

Agate is a common semiprecious silica mineral that has long been used as a gem and ornamental. Agate is the most common variety of chalcedony which is a form of quartz. Agate is, in fact, identical with quartz in composition and physical properties. 

According to ancient superstition, wearing agate made one agreeable, persuasive, prudent yet bold. It brought God's favor and bestowed the power to vanquish enemies and acquire riches. White agate supposedly cured insomnia.

 JoCo Stones

These stones are quartz crystals.  Some have several quartz stones mixed together.  All were picked up in my yard.  I, in some cases, broke them down into smaller pieces and some I found in the perfect size.  I then tumbled them in various grits for 2 months and what you see in my jewelry is the end product.  These are truly JoCo Stones, directly from Johnston County, NC.

Goldstone Story

(somewhat an urban legend)


The story goes, sometime during the early 1800's, an Italian monk was making glass at his monastery. He accidentally spilled some copper filings into his molten glass and, voila, goldstone was born. The recipe for making goldstone was kept secret by the monks, but was handed down through time.