Jade in Chinese culture

When my firstborn was christened, one of my friends, a lawyer of Chinese descent, was one of the godfathers. The christening gift he gave my daughter was a green jade pendant, sculpted in the image of a Buddha, hanging on a fine gold chain. My daughter, now 16, still keeps the jade Buddha. It fascinates her — much, I suppose, as I was fascinated by jade jewelry at a young age.

It wasn’t due to any real knowledge about the value of jade. It had more to do with myths and legends attached to the stone that sort of lent life to it and made it special. I feel the same way about opals although in a lesser degree. Jade has always been my stone.

To the Chinese, jade is more than a lustrous stone and they have a saying that “Gold has a value; jade is invaluable.” The Chinese have been carving jade (”yu”) as early as 12,000 years ago. “The manufacture of Chinese jade articles was already highly developed by the Shang Dynasty (16th to 11th century B.C). The Chinese of this period had the technology to produce jade articles of every imaginable type, shape, and size. By the end of the Chou Dynasty (11th century to 256 B.C.) and the beginning of the Han Dynasty, Chinese jades reached a second peak in their development; craftsmen had more advanced tools as well as more efficient methods of polishing jade and creating unsurpassed masterpieces. From this point on, jade craftsmen could accommodate practically any and every customer demand.”

The philosopher Confucius (September 28, 551 BC – 479 BC) purportedly said, “A gentleman always carried a jade pendant.”

From The History of Ancient Chinese Jade Culture:

According to Shu Wen compiled by Hsu Shen of the Eastern Han the five virtues of jade were: benevolence, integrity, intelligence, bravery, trustworthiness which were exactly those expected of a gentleman.

It was the Duke of Zhou who chronicled the Zhou Rites and put things in proper order. The six ritual jades were dedicated for ritual ceremonies:

Bi-disk – Heaven
Cong – Earth
Gui – East
Zhang – South
Tiger – West
Huang – North

Jade as jewelry

As a stone of intrinsic value, jade refers to both nephrite and jadeite. Because they are more rare, jadeite is regarded as more precious. The best jadeite is from Burma (Myanmar).

Contrary to common belief, jade is not always green.

Nephrite ranges mainly from mid to dark green or grey-green, but it can also be white, yellowish or reddish. Rarer, and somewhat tougher, jadeite displays hues which include green, but also white or pink, and reds, blacks, browns and violets. In both minerals, the way the colour is distributed varies a great deal. Only in the very finest jade is the colour evenly distributed. Both nephrite and jadeite often have veins, blemishes and streaks running through them, though these may not always be regarded as flaws. On the contrary, some of these patterns are considered particularly valuable. [Jade]

Personally, I prefer jade that show some veins because the unique pattern stamps individuality to a stone.

Jade jewelry is sold all over Asia, particularly in countries that have been heavily influenced by Chinese culture. In Hong Kong, Bangkok and Singapore, jade bangles, pendants, earrings and beads are sold in flea markets, often without warranties. When buying jade, it is always best to go to a reputable store because a lot of sellers pass off less valuable stones as jade. These are known as faux jade.

Many minerals are sold as jade. Some of these are: serpentine (also bowenite), carnelian, aventurine quartz, glass, grossularite, Vesuvianite, soapstone (and other steatites such as shoushan stone) and recently, Australian chrysoprase. “Korean jade,” “Suzhou jade,” “Styrian jade,” “Olive jade”, and “New jade” are all really serpentine; “Transvaal jade” or “African jade” is grossularite; “Peace jade” is a mixture of serpentine, stichtite, and quartz; “Mountain jade” is dyed dolomite marble.

(Photos from Stock.Xchng)