Sleeping Beauty turquoise is world-renowned for its distinct, intense robin's egg blue color and lack of matrix material. It is traditionally sourced from the Sleeping Beauty mine near Globe, Arizona, which has since shifted operations away from gemstone production, making high-quality specimens highly sought after by collectors.
Is this sleeping beauty turquoise?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch sleeping beauty turquoise with a known reference. Sleeping Beauty Turquoise sits at Mohs 5-6, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: white to pale green.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: waxy to subvitreous.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: sky blue, robins egg blue.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: triclinic. Typical habit: massive, cryptocrystalline, crusts.
Often confused with
Sleeping Beauty Turquoise vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Sleeping Beauty Turquoise is noticeably harder (Mohs 5-6 vs. ~2-4); luster reads waxy to subvitreous on Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and vitreous, porcelaneous, earthy on Chrysocolla.
How to tell apart: Luster reads waxy to subvitreous on Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and vitreous to waxy on Variscite.
How to tell apart: Luster reads waxy to subvitreous on Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and vitreous, may be pearly on Smithsonite.
Often found alongside sleeping beauty turquoise
Minerals reported to co-occur with sleeping beauty turquoise. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- CuAl₆(PO₄)₄(OH)₈·4H₂O
- Mohs hardness
- 5-6
- Density
- 2.6-2.9 g/cm³
- Colors
- Sky blueRobins egg blue
- Streak
- White to pale green
- Luster
- Waxy to subvitreous
- Transparency
- Opaque
- Crystal system
- Triclinic
- Crystal habit
- Massive, cryptocrystalline, crusts
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Gemstone, Lapidary, Collector
- Host rock
- hydrothermal alteration zones in porphyry
Where rockhounds find sleeping beauty turquoise
Classic worldwide localities
- Globe, Arizona, USA
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: hydrothermal alteration zones in porphyry. If you start seeing quartz, pyrite, kaolinite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: massive, cryptocrystalline, crusts. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
How do you identify sleeping beauty turquoise?+
Where is sleeping beauty turquoise found?+
Is sleeping beauty turquoise safe to handle?+
What rocks look like sleeping beauty turquoise?+
What minerals are found with sleeping beauty turquoise?+
What kind of rock does sleeping beauty turquoise form in?+
What is sleeping beauty turquoise used for?+
Find sleeping beauty turquoise on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
