The Myth and Mystery of Jade

Jade is a gemstone of unique symbolic energy and unique in the myths that surround it. With its beauty and wide ranging expressiveness, Jade has held a special attraction for mankind for thousands of years.

This gem, with its discrete lustre, which comes in many fine nuances of green, has been known to Man for some 7000 years. In prehistoric times it was esteemed for its toughness, which made it an ideal material for weapons and tools.

As early as 3000 B.C. Jade was known in China as ‘Yu’, the 'Royal Gem'.  In the long history of the art and culture of the enormous Chinese empire, Jade has always had a very special significance, roughly comparable with that of gold and diamonds in the West. Jade was used not only for the finest objects and cult figures, but also in grave furnishings for high-ranking members of the imperial family. Today, too, this gem is regarded as a symbol of the good, the beautiful and the precious. It embodies the Confucian virtues of wisdom, justice, compassion, modesty and courage, yet it also symbolises the female-erotic.  It was and still is honoured and esteemed Jade more highly than gold.

In the ancient world, Jade was admired as the stone of love, inner peace, harmony and balance. In other regions and cultures, Jade was regarded as a lucky or protective stone; yet it had nowhere near the significance that it had in Asia, which was presumably due to the fact that people knew relatively little about this fascinating gem. Fortunately however, in recent times, people's understanding of this gem, which fascinates not only the connoisseurs by its perfect interplay of hardness and toughness with an enchanting range of colours and fine lustre, has improved; and their esteem for it has been on the increase all over the world.

What is Jade?

Jade, or Yu, as it is called in China, is strictly speaking a generic term for two different gems, Nephrite and Jadeite. The name is derived from the Spanish Piedra de Ijada, loin-stone, Jade having been recognised by the Amerindians as a remedy for kidney ailments. Because of its beneficial effect on the kidneys, the stone was also known as Lapis Nephriticus. That, indeed, is where the term 'Nephrite' came from.

Jadeite and Nephrite are both regarded in China as ‘Zhen Yu’, or 'Genuine Jade'.  It was not until the beginning of the 19th century that mineralogists and gemnologists started to differentiate between them, since they bear a considerable resemblance to each other in terms of their appearance, their hardness and the properties they exhibit when being processed. Both are tough, since they consist of dense, close-grained, matted aggregates, but they differ from one another in their chemical composition and colours.

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.