Callaïs
Callaïs is the generic name for ancient green-blue precious stones used for making pendants and beads by western European cultures of the later Neolithic and early Bronze Age. The term includes turquoise and variscite but not jade. "Callaïs" was described by Pliny the Elder as being paler than lapis lazuli. Callaïs objects have been found in Neolithic tombs from the mid- 5th millennium BC in the Carnac region of western France. Callaïs deposits are thought to have been widely distributed throughout the Iberian peninsula, and transported from Andalusia, Castile, and Catalonia to Brittany, Normandy, and the Paris Basin The Paris Basin () is one of the major geological regions of France. It developed since the Triassic over remnant uplands of the Variscan orogeny (Hercynian orogeny). The sedimentary basin, no longer a single drainage basin, is a large sag in .... References Anthropology Gemstones Jewellery making Lithics {{gemology-stub ...
[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  

Turquoise
Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone for millennia due to its hue. The robin egg blue or sky blue color of the Persian turquoise mined near the modern city of Nishapur, Iran, has been used as a guiding reference for evaluating turquoise quality. Like most other opaque gems, turquoise has been devalued by the introduction of treatments, imitations, and synthetics into the market. Names The word ''turquoise'' dates to the 17th century and is derived from the Old French ''turquois'' meaning "Turkish" because the mineral was first brought to Europe through the Ottoman Empire.Turquoise
. minerals.usgs.gov However, according to
[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]