Egyptian Turquoise and small red Ruby, set in a pendant handcrafted in Sydney especially for the two gemstones, all in solid Sterling Silver (with a granule of solid 9ct Gold fixed to the bottom of the pendant).

The above Turquoise has its source in the southern region of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsular, where Turquoise was mined over thousands of years. The gemstone was rare and highly valued in Ancient Egypt, basically only ever used by the wealthy and powerful. A favourite colour combination of the Ancient Egyptians was red, light blue and dark blue, especially in inlaid work, the red supplied by Cornelian, the light blue by Turquoise, the dark blue by Lapis Lazuli.

In the last Egyptian dynasty, the Ptolomaic, the Sinai mines were heavily exploited, presumably to service the growing market of Rome, but depletion of the mines and increasing supply from the mines of western Persia led to the Sinai mines falling into disuse. Only recently have two of the mines started up commercial production.

The above Egyptian Turquoise is of very good quality. It is a natural gemstone, not dyed or stabilized, and of a good, solid turquoise blue, with some surface traces of mother rock matrix. (Note: Turquoise, when natural and not stabilized, needs some care, for it is a porous rock gemstone and can be damaged by the chemicals in everyday products like perfumes and detergents and sun cream lotions. Care is recommended, and a rub with a damp cloth after wear.)