Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and Coral Sterling Silver Cuff Bracelet

This Turquoise and Coral Sterling Silver Bracelet is a real work of art. This is western jewelry art at its absolute finest. This bracelet uniquely features nuggets of genuine Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and Coral. Turquoise jewelry is in style now for its color and elegance, and this Turquoise has lovely shades of robin's egg blue and seagreen. This top-of-the-line Turquoise and Coral is highlighted against the gleam of Sterling Silver. Large silver feathers bookend hand-made silver dots and the Turquoise and Coral. Hand-twisted silver wires give this fine piece of Turquoise jewelry exquisite detail. Made in our shop. The double band is 3/16" wide and the centerpiece is 1-3/16". Stamped Sterling. The size is a 5" to 7" wrist. Turquoise and Coral nuggets may slightly vary. The photo is an excellent representation of the one-of-a-kind piece of hand-made jewelry you'll receive.

Turquoise has been, since about 200 B.C., extensively used by southwestern U.S Native Americans and by many of the Indian tribes in Mexico. The Native American Jewelry or "Indian style" jewelry with turquoise mounted in or with silver is relatively new. Some believe this style of Jewelry was unknown prior to about 1880, when a white trader persuaded a Navajo craftsman to make turquoise and silver jewelry using coin silver. Prior to this time, the Native Americans had made solid turquoise beads, carvings, and inlaid mosaics. Recently, turquoise has found wide acceptance among people of all walks of life and from many different ethnic groups.

There are four types of precious coral in Hawaii: black coral (Antipathidae), gold coral (Parazoanthidae), red or pink coral (Corallidae) and bamboo coral. Each of these has a different internal composition. Red and pink corals produce a calcite skeleton similar in hardness to ivory and pearls. Bamboo corals, on the other hand, produce a skeleton composed partially of calcite and partially of protein that is similar to the keratin in your fingernails. These alternating bands of material resemble a bamboo stalk; thus the corals' name. In Hawaii, black corals are found in 100-300 ft. of water, shallow enough to harvest using scuba equipment. Many harvesters, however, have died in pursuit of coral trees at the deep end of this range. Red, gold and bamboo coral are found between 1,000 and 1,500 ft; so harvesting is conducted with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) or submarines.

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