Vintage Navajo Tribe Sleeping Kingman Turquoise and Nickel Silver (not sterling) Squash Blossom Necklace with Flute dropdown pendants. This authentic and substantial old Native American squash blossom weighs 175 grams. Necklace features 8 sterling flute pendants centered by Naja (2 by 2 1/4 inches). The turquoise cabochons have the classic Kingman color matrix (vibrant blue with black highlights) that is always in so much demand.
Handmade Navajo necklace measures 29 wearable inches in length. The Kingman Turquoise Mine is one of the oldest and highest producing Turquoise Mines in America. It was originally discovered by prehistoric Indians well over 1000 years ago.Kingman Turquoise is known for its beautiful sky blue color and produces many variations of blue Turquoise. The Kingman Turquoise mine also produces green Turquoise from the Turquoise Mountain side of the mine.
Kingman Turquoise has been the biggest supplier of Turquoise to the Southwestern Turquoise Jewelry industry for nearly as long as the American Turquoise Jewelry industry has existed. In fact, the Kingman Turquoise mine was once part of a Turquoise boom around 1000 AD when the Mayan culture was using a lot of Turquoise for self adornments and ceremonial items. Today, as in the old times, blue Turquoise from Kingman, Arizona is king, even though the mine produces all colors of Turquoise and green Turquoise is almost becoming blue Turquoise's equal in popularity these days. The Mineral Park Mine, (Kingman Turquoise Mine,) is located in the Acerbate Mountains 14 miles northwest of Kingman, Arizona.
It has been commercially mined since the late 1880's to the early 1900's by the Aztec Turquoise Co, The Los Angeles Gem Co, Arizona Turquoise Co, Southwest Turquoise Co and Mineral Park Turquoise Co and now the Colbaugh Processing Inc. Chuck Colbaugh represented Arizona in a gemstone exhibition competition held by the Smithsonian Institution for the State of Arizona with a spectacular Kingman Turquoise cabochon. Chuck and his wife, Edith also donated thirty Turquoise carvings made from Kingman Turquoise to the Mojave Museum of History and Art in Kingman in the early 1970s, they are still on display today. Chuck Colbaugh had the Turquoise Mining contract for Ithaca Peak and Turquoise Mountain since the early 1960's and the concession is still in the family today run by Marty and son Josh Colbaugh. Today Kingman Turquoise is found in American Turquoise Jewelry as well as Turquoise Jewelry from around the world. Please send the item back to us with tracking.