Rare Cornish Azurite Sterling Silver Pendant

A rare find—British Azurite, hand-collected from the historic Ting Tang Mine in Cornwall. This mine, active between 1750-1867, produced 40,000 tons of copper ore along with world-class mineral specimens. With the mine long exhausted and closed, very little of this material remains today.

Two Skies was fortunate enough to acquire a piece from the private historical collection of Richard Humphrey. We’ve carefully cut, polished, and framed the stunning minerals of Azurite, Malachite, and Cuprite. Our stock is limited to just a few cut stones from this specimen, and it's unlikely we’ll come across it again.

In ancient Egypt and on the mythical island of Atlantis, Azurite was believed to have psychic abilities. The richness of its hues makes it highly sought-after by collectors. Its colour varies from light to deep blue, it can also contain colour from the other associated minerals Malachite, Cuprite & Chrysocolla.

Azurite is a copper carbonate mineral typically found in the oxidation zones of copper deposits, often considered a secondary ore of copper. The key locations it can be found is United Kingdom, United States & Australia.

Why do silversmiths use 925%? Measured in parts per thousand, pure silver (999%) is too soft so silversmiths mix it with other metals to make it it harder. The purer the metal, the higher the polish, but it is a lot softer (thus less durable). The harder the metal is, the more hard wearing the jewellery is, but it will also tarnish easier as it has less silver content. Therefore, the silver industry set a standard percentage content for fine silver (925); what we know as "sterling silver". At Two Skies our silversmiths use 925 (sterling) silver for ring shafts and moving parts, and a very high 950% on our stones settings, which enables us to get a strong jewellery item with a beautiful and secure stone setting, without any gluing. Each piece of our jewellery is hand stamped with our Two Skies Hallmark alongside the recognised industry 925 Hallmark.

Relax - you can shop with confidence at Two Skies.  If you change your mind, simply get in touch to let us know you want to return one or all of your items within 7 days of receiving your order, and we'll get a replacement/refund arranged - no quibbles!