'Fake' Turquoise

From the exhibition:
Turquoise, Water, Sky: The Stone and Its Meaning

Museum of Indian Arts and Culture

To the Native American it is the turquoise color that carries all the power and references to sky, water, birth, health. The stone does not necessarily have to be used for ritual or decoration. These pieces dating from 800-1200AD are wood painted to resemble turquoise. Given the scarcity of turquoise and the difficulty mining the fragile stone with primitive tools these three pieces are not fake in the eyes of a Native American.

Usage: Courtesy Museum of Indian Arts and Culture

Credit: Photo Kitty Leaken


Note: Representative image at left is often cropped for display purposes. Downloaded high-resolution images are not cropped.