In a remote corner of Upper Burma, thousands are busy, seeking, searching, clawing at a mountain, prying loose boulders from the compact brown soil. Jack hammers pound out a rat-a-tat beat, punctuated by the occasional cymbal crash of pick and shovel, while a choir of coolies stand behind with baskets to carry the debris out of this earthen tomb. As each boulder is turned over, it is quickly examined, then discarded, along with the mounds of dirt that surround it. So the process is repeated. Over and over, again and again, hour after hour, day after day. The operation is a study in patience. Patience, patience – those who hurry lose, they make mistakes, they miss the prize, they don't go to heaven. The construction of the Great Pyramids in Egypt was a study in patience; that in Upper Burma today is on no less a scale, but involves deconstruction, the dismantling of entire mountains, step by step, bit by bit, stone by stone, one pebble at a time. Like the builders of pyramids, all involved share a single-minded devotion to the task. Patience, patience – those who hurry lose, they miss something, they don't go to heaven. Those who hurry don't find jade.

Burma, jade, jadeite, fei cui, Hpakan, gems

There are many dealers who look upon gemological labs with a good deal of disdain and the feeling is often mutual. So often today it seems that gemologists and traders are on opposite sides. Tug, tug, pull, pull, each seems to have a different agenda. Dealers often view gemologists as inferior beings (those who can, sell; those who can't, teach or identify). And, for their part, gemologists look upon merchants as some type of single-celled amoebae (those who understand, teach or study, while those who can't, become merchants). We hope the following article will go some ways towards bridging this gulf, by gently (and sometimes not so gently) pointing out the problems and solutions for each camp.

Burma, jade, jadeite, fei cui, Hpakan, gems

This unique program shows us the jade road as it exists today, practically unchanged from 600 years ago. The remote mining areas in northern Burma where only very few outsiders have gained access are visited. Market places in Hong Kong, where jade changes hands in the very peculiar Chinese way of mixing business with gambling, are also presented.

Jade., Documentary films Burma., jadeite, fei cui, gems

This unique program shows us the jade road as it exists today, practically unchanged from 600 years ago. The remote mining areas in northern Burma where only very few outsiders have gained access are visited. Market places in Hong Kong, where jade changes hands in the very peculiar Chinese way of mixing business with gambling, are also presented.

Jade., Documentary films Burma., jadeite, fei cui, gems

In 1996, several gemologists set off for Burma's remote jade mines, the first visit by foreigners since the early 1960's. This is the story of their epic journey.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, R.W. Hughes, gems

In a remote corner of Upper Burma, thousands are busy, seeking, searching, clawing at a mountain, prying loose boulders from the compact brown soil. Jack hammers pound out a rat-a-tat beat, punctuated by the occasional cymbal crash of pick and shovel, while a choir of coolies stand behind with baskets to carry the debris out of this earthen tomb. As each boulder is turned over, it is quickly examined, then discarded, along with the mounds of dirt that surround it. So the process is repeated. Over and over, again and again, hour after hour, day after day. The operation is a study in patience. Patience, patience – those who hurry lose, they make mistakes, they miss the prize, they don't go to heaven. The construction of the Great Pyramids in Egypt was a study in patience; that in Upper Burma today is on no less a scale, but involves deconstruction, the dismantling of entire mountains, step by step, bit by bit, stone by stone, one pebble at a time. Like the builders of pyramids, all involved share a single-minded devotion to the task. Patience, patience – those who hurry lose, they miss something, they don't go to heaven. Those who hurry don't find jade.

Burma, jade, jadeite, fei cui, RWHL, gems

In 1996, several gemologists set off for Burma's remote jade mines, the first visit by foreigners since the early 1960's. This is the story of their epic journey.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, gems

In 1996, several gemologists set off for Burma's remote jade mines, the first visit by foreigners since the early 1960's. This is the story of their epic journey.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, gems

In 1996, several gemologists set off for Burma's remote jade mines, the first visit by foreigners since the early 1960's. This is the story of their epic journey.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, R.W. Hughes, gems

In 1996, several gemologists set off for Burma's remote jade mines, the first visit by foreigners since the early 1960's. This is the story of their epic journey.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, maw-sit-sit, Burma, gems

jade, jadeite, jadeite, fei cui testing, b-jade, gems

A plastic coated jadeite cabochon and a quartz coated with red plastic to imitate ruby are described.

imitation gems, jade, jadeite, fei cui, ruby, star ruby, imitation ruby, quartz, corundum, synthetic corundum.7, gems

A plastic coated jadeite cabochon and a quartz coated with red plastic to imitate ruby are described.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, imitation star ruby, imitation gem, synthetic corundum.7, gems

A plastic coated jadeite cabochon and a quartz coated with red plastic to imitate ruby are described.

corundum, treatments, jade, jadeite, fei cui, assembled stones.8, ruby imitations, ruby, gems

In September 2006, I made my first field trip to Guangzhou via Hong Kong in order to extend my earlier research on the jade trade among the Yunnanese migrants of Thailand and Burma that I began in 2000. The purpose of my trip was to research the expansion of the Yunnanese trading networks of the jade business from Burma—where the most precious jadeite in the world is ocured—to Guangzhou, current developments in state and non-state trading regulations, new forms of transaction, capital flows, and shipments of jade stones and products. My second field trip to Guangzhou took place

jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, Taiwan, China, Guangzhou, Yunnan, gems

Only a dozen minerals (crystalline compounds) are known to have existed among the ingredients that formed the solar system 4.6 billion years ago, but today Earth has more than 4,400 mineral species. Earth’s diverse mineralogy developed over the eons, as new mineral-generating processes came into play. Remarkably, more than half of the mineral species on Earth owe their existence to life, which began transforming the planet’s geology more than two billion years ago.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, minerals, geology, gems

jade, China, Science and civilization in China, gems

It is difficult to overstate the importance of this two-volume work, which was the product not just of John’s writing career, but also of his home business, Peri Lithon, which he operated for decades with his wife, Marge. No authors ever worked harder on a single work. Over 6,000 entries, virtually all of which are annotated. There is a limited edition in fake leather with a siipcase. My pick for the greatest gem book of all time.

corundum, ruby, sapphire, history.1, chemistry.2, properties.3, geology.11, inclusions.5, sources.12, synthetic corundum.7, treatments.6, assembled stones.8, color.4, fashioning.9, quality.10, introduction.0, bibliography, books on books, jade, jadeite, fei cui, nephrite, gems

Robert Frey and Robert Deans: It has been said that a single issue of a modern newspaper—like The New York Times, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, or Le Monde—contains more information than a person in the 17th century would encounter in a lifetime. Jade scholarship, like all fields, cannot escape the information explosion of our time. Our understanding of jade has expanded dramatically both through archaeological discoveries and ongoing scientific research, making a comprehensive, up-to-date global survey long overdue. The best studies on ancient jade have come from meticulously controlled excavations in places such as China, Russia, and Mexico, offering data far beyond the reach of earlier scholars who relied largely on secondhand textual sources. Advances in archaeological and analytical techniques have greatly enhanced the accuracy and scope of our knowledge. The first Western attempt at a jade survey came in the early 1800s from French sinologist Abel-Rémusat, based on the King’s Library in Paris, followed by a more substantial work by German mineralogist Fischer later that century. A major leap came with American jade collector Heber Bishop at the century’s end, whose oversized, lavish volumes—printed in just 106 copies—were never sold and meant only for select institutions and dignitaries. With no public reprint, they remained rare and inaccessible. In contrast, this 20th-century volume aims to make top-tier jade research available to a broad audience. Research continues, and new jade sources and scientific analyses have shed light on both raw materials and artifacts. Publishing a worldwide survey is no small feat—it demands a firm deadline and the collaboration of leading experts to present a coherent, authoritative account. The result is a landmark work that will shape jade scholarship for decades to come. This survey of jade use around the world is actually an anthology of essays by prominent scholars. First, a gemologist explains the minerology of jade. Then a series of essays on jade use in China, from prehistory to the present, takes up about half of the book. Finally, shorter essays address jade use in Japan, the South Pacific, Europe, Burma, India, and the Americas. Excellent photographs throughout the volume capture the visual qualities that make jade so appealing. The ambitiousness of its scope makes this survey a valuable addition to the jade literature, but the contributions of the authors vary so widely in method and tone that the volume lacks unity.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, nephrite, China, Burma, gems, Fischer-Other

Robert Frey and Robert Deans: It has been said that a single issue of a modern newspaper—like The New York Times, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, or Le Monde—contains more information than a person in the 17th century would encounter in a lifetime. Jade scholarship, like all fields, cannot escape the information explosion of our time. Our understanding of jade has expanded dramatically both through archaeological discoveries and ongoing scientific research, making a comprehensive, up-to-date global survey long overdue. The best studies on ancient jade have come from meticulously controlled excavations in places such as China, Russia, and Mexico, offering data far beyond the reach of earlier scholars who relied largely on secondhand textual sources. Advances in archaeological and analytical techniques have greatly enhanced the accuracy and scope of our knowledge. The first Western attempt at a jade survey came in the early 1800s from French sinologist Abel-Rémusat, based on the King’s Library in Paris, followed by a more substantial work by German mineralogist Fischer later that century. A major leap came with American jade collector Heber Bishop at the century’s end, whose oversized, lavish volumes—printed in just 106 copies—were never sold and meant only for select institutions and dignitaries. With no public reprint, they remained rare and inaccessible. In contrast, this 20th-century volume aims to make top-tier jade research available to a broad audience. Research continues, and new jade sources and scientific analyses have shed light on both raw materials and artifacts. Publishing a worldwide survey is no small feat—it demands a firm deadline and the collaboration of leading experts to present a coherent, authoritative account. The result is a landmark work that will shape jade scholarship for decades to come. This survey of jade use around the world is actually an anthology of essays by prominent scholars. First, a gemologist explains the minerology of jade. Then a series of essays on jade use in China, from prehistory to the present, takes up about half of the book. Finally, shorter essays address jade use in Japan, the South Pacific, Europe, Burma, India, and the Americas. Excellent photographs throughout the volume capture the visual qualities that make jade so appealing. The ambitiousness of its scope makes this survey a valuable addition to the jade literature, but the contributions of the authors vary so widely in method and tone that the volume lacks unity.

jade, jadeite, fei cui, nephrite, China, Burma, gems, Fischer-Other