back<< From the dusty plains of Africa or the bustling streets of Hong Kong - Carol has sought out the most distinct and intriguing beads and artifacts. Each with their own histories. Their own tales. And their own energetic reverberations. AMBER CORAL GOLD IVORY JADE QUARTZ SILVER TIGER'S EYE TURQUOISE AMBER Amber is the fossilized, frozen resin of pine trees and exists in shades of yellow, orange, red, white, brown, green, bluish and “black”. In 66AD, Emperor Nero developed a great passion for amber. In fact, during his lifetime, the price of an amber figurine, no matter how small, exceeded the price of a living healthy slave. Used for jewelry since Prehistoric times, Carol sources her amber from the Baltic and from Africa-where she works closely with a contact specializing in African amber from Dogon villages in Mali. Carol never uses reconstituted amber in her creations. >>back to top CORAL Carol Taylor only uses antique branch and carved coral. She does not support the mining and over-harvesting of modern-day coral reefs in any way. As certifying coral is a time consuming and expensive process, Carol works only with the most reputable of vendors-to ensure the antiquity of each piece. >>back to top GOLD Gold is the most malleable element on earth, so much so, that just one gram of gold (about the size of a grain of rice) could be beaten into a thin film that could cover over 10 square feet. Found most often in underground veins of quartz, gold predominantly exists in the Earth's crust in its pure, elemental state.  Gold is extremely un-reactive and doesn't tarnish like most other metals. Consequently, gold jewelry can survive almost unchanged for thousands of years. The purity of gold is measured in carats, with 100% purity being defined as 24 carat. >>back to top IVORY Carol Taylor only uses pre-ban, antique Ivory. She does not support modern day sales of Ivory in either Africa, India or Asia. As certifying each piece of ivory is a time consuming and expensive process, Carol works only with the most reputable of vendors-to ensure the antiquity of each piece. >>back to top JADE What most people simply call Jade is actually two different stones: Jadeite and Nephrite. For centuries, the stones were thought to be the same, but with the advent of crystallography, scientists discovered that while they both contained Silica, Nephrite contained magnesium and Jadeite contained Aluminum. Throughout the long history of Chinese art and culture, jade has always had a very special significance, roughly comparable with that of gold and diamonds in the West. Considered to be a very lucky stone, Jade comes in a myriad of colors including black, brown, violet, reddish, yellow, white, as well as varying shades of green. >>back to top QUARTZ Clear Quartz is pure, or nearly pure, Silicon Dioxide made of Silicon and Oxygen, the Earth’s most common elements. Quartz comes in virtually every color known to man and many other valuable stones make-up the Quartz family. These include: Tigers Eye, Amethyst, Citrine and Onyx. >>back to top SILVER Silver is the best conductor of heat and electricity, indeed it has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any known material. Strong and malleable this mineral can endure extreme temperature ranges. Many beads, amulets and icons incorporated into Carol Taylor pieces are made of Tibetan, Touareg or Ethiopian silver. This unique metal is typically 50% silver and 50% alloy. >>back to top TIGER'S EYE A compact form of quartz, Tiger's Eye comes in golden-yellow or golden-brown, and is thus named for the iridescent flicker of its colored bands, which bring to mind the yellow eyes of tigers. >>back to top TURQUOISE In many cultures Turquoise has, for thousands of years, been appreciated as a holy stone, a good-luck-charm or a talisman. Hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminum, turquoise ranges in color from sky blue, bluish green, and apple green to a very pale green. The name “Turquoise” means ‘Turkish stone’, because early trade routes brought it to Europe via Turkey. >>back to top