Carico Lake Turquoise: Field Guide to Nevada's Apple-Green Faustite Mine
Carico Lake Turquoise: Field Guide to Nevada's Apple-Green Faustite Mine
Carico Lake turquoise comes from the Carico Lake Valley in Lander County, Nevada, and is one of the few documented American deposits to produce faustite — the zinc-substituted mineral in the turquoise group responsible for the distinctive apple-green color that makes Carico Lake stone immediately recognizable in the field.
Field Notes by Mateo James
Lowry describes the deposit clearly: "This area has produced many colors of turquoise as well as the apple green mineral faustite." Faustite was first formally identified as a mineral species in 1953, and Carico Lake is among its documented sources. For collectors, this is significant: when you encounter vivid apple-green stone from this region, you are likely looking at something chemically distinct from standard blue-green copper-phosphate turquoise.
Prehistoric mining evidence — stone tools found in the Carico Lake Valley — establishes that this deposit was known and worked long before modern commercial operations. The first recorded mining activity dates to 1909. August Stenich claimed the area in 1930, naming it after his Austrian girlfriend Aurora — a naming story that Lowry preserves verbatim.
The mine's connection to Morenci adds an interesting chapter to its commercial history: "William 'Lucky' Brown and J. W. Edgar were mining turquoise at the Carico Lake Mine in Nevada when they received a letter that offered them the turquoise mining rights at Morenci." The offer pulled two experienced operators away from Carico Lake toward Arizona's copper country — where the turquoise found in porphyry copper deposits would become a famous source in its own right. As of Lowry's 2010 account, Ernie Montoya is the current owner.
Collector's Handbook
What to look for: Carico Lake's signature is apple-green to yellow-green stone — the faustite end of the color spectrum. Blue and blue-green stone is also documented from the deposit.
Recognition tells: Apple-green "turquoise" from the American Southwest should prompt a Carico Lake consideration. Faustite is genuinely distinct from copper-blue turquoise; both are legitimate gemstones with documented jewelry use.
Honest mine-status hedge: Lowry's 2010 account documents Ernie Montoya as owner. Current production details are not confirmed in primary sources beyond that date.
Related mine guides: Pages for Bisbee, Sleeping Beauty, Number Eight, Cerrillos, Royston, Kingman, Lander Blue, and Morenci mines are coming soon to this field guide.
References
- Lowry, Joe Dan. Turquoise: The World Story of a Fascinating Gemstone (2010), ~lines 12428–12474. [Primary source — full entry including faustite, prehistoric tools, Stenich history, Morenci connection, Ernie Montoya.]