Sonoran turquoise is mined from the Cananea-Nacozari region in Sonora, Mexico, just south of the Arizona border.

It is formed as a byproduct of ancient copper mineralization in the Sonoran Desert. Unlike most turquoise that forms in hard rock veins, Sonoran typically occurs as individual nuggets inside soft clay deposits. Much of the region’s extraction happens near large copper mining operations around Campitos Mountain and Nacozari.

Sonoran turquoise comes in an array of colors. From deep blues to dark emerald green, some stones have blue, green and gold (deep golden yellow).

I have purchased a lot of my Sonoran stones from reputable lapidary artists, but have become friends with one of the mine partners and have gotten my stones directly from him since.