Easter Blue Turquoise: Field Guide to the Tonopah Mine Also Sold as 'Blue Gem'
Part of the Turquoise Mines field guides and The Southwest Jewelry Guide.
Oscar Branson’s 1975 book placed the Easter Blue mine northwest of Tonopah, Nevada. Every statement below is quoted or paraphrased from that book, with page numbers, so you can check each one. Branson wrote in 1975; anything he describes as current describes 1975, not today.
What Branson recorded
According to Branson (1975, p. 38), the Easter Blue Mine northwest of Tonopah, Nevada was discovered in 1907. It was never a large producer and changed hands many times. [1]
Branson (1975) explained the name:
“The first turquoise found here was an easter blue color; therefore, the name.”
— Branson (1975), p. 38 [1]
On the stone, Branson (1975) wrote:
“Some stones show a very attractive large mottled spider web with light blue centers in the webbing.”
— Branson (1975), p. 38 [1]
According to Branson (1975, p. 38), it was also known as the Blue Mountain Mine and Blue Gem Mine, not the Blue Gem near Battle Mountain. [1]
See all the turquoise mines we profile, including the other Nevada mines.
How this page is sourced. We strive for accuracy: every factual statement above is quoted from or credited to the printed work listed below, with page numbers, and this page is continuously updated with new information as we read more of our library. See something we should correct? Contact us.
Sources
- Branson, Oscar T. Turquoise: The Gem of the Centuries. Santa Fe: Treasure Chest Publications, 1975. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions in 1975.