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Morenci Turquoise; Arizona Mine, Morenci, Clifton-Morenci District,
Shannon Mountains, Greenlee County, Arizona, USA. An open pit
copper mine located in the N½ Section 16, T4S, R29E (Clifton 15 minute
topographic map), owned by Phelps Dodge Corp. Map Reference: 33°5'26"N
, 109°21'58"W.
Morenci turquoise was mined in southeastern Arizona until approximately
1990. It is located very near the New Mexico border, and ranges in
color from classic high electric blue to light azure. Prehistoric
Indians who valued the stone for its deep blue color were the first to
discover the deposit. These people adorned themselves with rough hewn
beads and carved talisman made from the mineral
Morenci is often associated with an unusual black matrix of irregular
iron pyrite, which looks metallic when polished. Although they are
rare, stones with unusual birds-eye patterns, red matrix and an
occasional layer of silver have also been found. The Morenci name is
derived from the large open pit copper mine owned and operated by the
Phelps Dodge Corporation. Early examples of this striking turquoise
were of the "lunch box" variety, meaning they were carried out of the
mine by workers and miners.
Morenci is well known; it was one of the first types of American
turquoise to find its way to the market and is always difficult to
obtain because the mine was depleted so long ago. It is believed that
the best Morenci ever produced was discovered in the late 1960's to
early 70's. During this time period, the mine produced a high,
electric blue variety with iron pyrite inclusions. Since Morenci is
no longer being mined, and because of its striking color and unusual
matrix combinations, high grade natural Morenci is a valuable, highly
collectible mineral.
USGS; Arizona.--In Arizona turquoise ranks first in terms of value of
production and is also the best known of its gem materials. Nearly all
important deposits of turquoise are located near copper occurrences or
in copper deposits in arid desert regions of the world. Thus, the world
famous turquoise deposits associated with certain of the large Arizona
copper deposits are to be expected.
Turquoise is, or has been, mined from a number of these copper mines as
a byproduct, usually by outside contractors. The financial and
operating terms of the collecting contracts vary from mine to mine.
Some of the operations are little more than the efforts of individual
commercial collectors; some are essentially full-scale mining
operations that are simultaneous with, but separate from, the regular
mining operations; and still others operate on an on-call basis as
turquoise is uncovered by the regular copper mining operation.
Regardless of the size or sophistication of the initial mining or
recovery operation, the actual turquoise is recovered by careful
extraction using hand methods.
John moved to the Bluff area in 1986. As a young man, he watched friends create jewelry and fell in love with the process. He was making silver jewelry on his own when he went to work for the Navajo Arts and Crafts Cooperative. He was mentored by Howard Begay, Tom Hosteen and Richard Livingston. Howard showed him how to deal with heavier silver, both wire and sheets. He taught him to use proper dimension as a weapon in creating good structure.
John spends six to eight hours each day working on his jewelry. He prefers complete silence when working. Often he is so intent on the process, that he can't really see the entire piece. When he is finished and the overall composition works, he finds it really pleasing.
John's creations are a combination of wonderful old styles inspired
by pre-1950's designs as well as contemporary interpretations. You may
see the tremendous amount of effort and individual steps which go into
John's jewelry in our Museum section under Exhibits