The Sleeping Beauty mine is seven miles outside of Globe, Arizona. Its turquoise is noted for its solid, light blue color with little or no matrix. The host rock is usually granite. Sleeping Beauty turquoise is the favorite of the Zuni Pueblo silversmiths for use in petit point, needlepoint and inlay jewelry.

 

Sleeping Beauty has traditionally been a mine yielding large amounts of turquoise, however, most recently it has only been producing a small amount of very small nuggets all of which needs to be hardened. Generally, approximately 4% of Sleeping Beauty turquoise is hard enough to use as natural, with most of the remaining turquoise being enhanced. The turquoise was then sold to large distributors in this country and Europe.

 

Due to the Sleeping Beauty mine's current low production, most of the Sleeping Beauty turquoise being sold today comes from large connections that have been accumulating over the years. These collections are large enough to keep good Enhanced Sleeping Beauty turquoise available for many years to come. Natural Sleeping Beauty remains quite rare and is an excellent addition to any jewelry collection.