Turkey holds essentially the world’s only significant supply of true meerschaum, the feather-light white stone (“sea foam”) dug from pits around Eskisehir and carved into the famous pipes that colour to amber with use. Miners sink shafts by hand into the clay to reach the nodules. Turkey restricts export of the raw block to protect the carving trade, so buy carved pieces there.
Meerschaum (sepiolite)
See it on the map
