In China jade has been valued above gold for thousands of years. Carvers were shaping it long before the first written records, Confucius compared it to the character of a good person, and parents still give a jade bangle or pendant to wish a child a safe and steady life.
Two stones called jade
"Jade" is the name of two different minerals. Nephrite is the jade of ancient China. Its most famous source is Hotan in Xinjiang, and creamy white Hetian jade has been the most prized for centuries. Jadeite reached China from Burma, now Myanmar, in the 18th century and is known for its translucent greens. In 1863 the French mineralogist Alexis Damour showed that the two are separate minerals. Chinese calls nephrite ruanyu, "soft jade," and jadeite feicui.
Jade and virtue
About five thousand years ago the Liangzhu culture near today's Shanghai buried its leaders with jade discs and tubes. The disc, called bi, lives on in the peace buckle.
The Book of Rites records Confucius explaining why the gentleman compares himself to jade: it is warm and lustrous like kindness, fine-grained and firm like wisdom, and its edges are sharp but do not cut, like a just person. A later saying puts it more simply: gold has a price, jade is priceless.
Jade in everyday life
- Bangles. A jade bangle is a classic gift from a mother to her daughter. A folk belief holds that if a bangle breaks in a fall, it has taken the blow meant for the wearer.
- Pendants. Popular carvings are the Buddha, the dragon, the gourd and the zodiac animals.
- On red string. A single jade bead on a red string joins two old symbols of protection.
An old saying holds that "people nurture jade": a piece worn every day takes on a soft polish from the skin.
Jade colors
Nephrite runs from white through cyan, a grayish green, to deep green and black. Jadeite comes in green, white, lavender and other colors. The trade judges jadeite by color and translucency and uses words such as "ice" for clear stones and "glutinous" for softly cloudy ones.
Caring for jade
Jade is tough but can chip or crack if it hits a hard floor. Take it off for sport and heavy work, wipe it with a soft damp cloth, and keep it away from perfume and cleaning products. Store it apart from other jewelry so that harder stones do not scratch it.
Jade at Buddha.store
- Myanmar Jadeite Bangle Bracelet, Ice-Glutinous Green Stone
- Hetian Jade Blessing Red String Bracelet with Silver
- Cyan Jade Peace Buckle Pendant with Traditional Carving
- Green Jadeite Dragon Phoenix Peace Buckle Necklace
- White Jade Plum Flower Leaf Ring
- White Jade Flower Stud Earrings with Silver Posts
