Jade Bibliography
Explore books, articles and historical sources on jade in Four Treasures, the Lotus Gemology reference database. This bibliography brings together matching records from the collection, with publication details, abstracts and cover images where available.
Jade References
The list below matches the terms jade, jadeite, nephrite or Fei Cui in the database's searchable fields. Some references discuss these materials as part of a broader subject.
![East and West (II): The jade road – 3, The lineage of the Gigaku masque – 4, The jade road]](/media/publications/239160627202-12 at 20.35.16.jpg "East and West (II): The jade road – 3, The lineage of the Gigaku masque – 4, The jade road]")
East and West (II): The jade road – 3, The lineage of the Gigaku masque – 4, The jade road]
Journal Article
Harada, Y. (1971) East and West (II): The jade road – 3, The lineage of the Gigaku masque – 4, The jade road]. Memoirs of the Research Department of the Toyo Bunko, No. 29, pp. 57–80.
Record No. 7141 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Jade fever in Carmel, Monterey Co., California
Journal Article
Rusic, R.H. (1971) Jade fever in Carmel, Monterey Co., California. Lapidary Journal, Vol. 25, No. 8, November, pp. 1166–1170.
Record No. 4484 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Mineralogy and paragenesis of jadeites from the Omi-Kotaki area, Central Japan
Conference Paper
Chihara, K. (1971) Mineralogy and paragenesis of jadeites from the Omi-Kotaki area, Central Japan. Proceedings of the IMA-IAGOD Meetings '70, 27 August–2 September, Tokyo: Mineral Society of Japan, pp. 147–156.
Record No. 4374 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Jade man down under
Journal Article
Ashley (1971) Jade man down under. Arts of Asia, Vol. 1, No. 3, May–June, pp. 41–44.
Record No. 3760 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Chinese Jades in the Seattle Art Museum
Book
Fuller, R.E. (1971) Chinese Jades in the Seattle Art Museum. Seattle, Seattle Art Museum, unpaginated [74 pp.]
Record No. 3629 | Sinkankas/Born No.: 2268 | not seen
A fantastic discovery in Alaska: Hundreds of tons of nephrite jade
Journal Article
Munz, W. (1970) A fantastic discovery in Alaska: Hundreds of tons of nephrite jade. Lapidary Journal, Vol. 24, No. 1, April, pp. 18–26.
Record No. 4479 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Jade for Beginners
Book
May, E. (1969) Jade for Beginners. Singapore, Asia Pacific Press, 65 pp.
Record No. 28791 | Sinkankas/Born No.: 4293; Born: pp. 229–230 | not seen
Sinkankas: Evidently resident in Singapore, May gives much useful advice to the jade buyer of modest means, beginning with a large chapter on the identification of the several jades and the associated problems of recognizing falsifications or substitutes. Some curious lore is thrown in for good measure along with a little history. Jade in Hong Kong is next taken up, with a short chapter on “jewelry jade,” or “imperial jade.” There are also chapters on buying tips, a glossary, p. 30–7, discussions on symbols and their meanings, a list of dynasties, and recommended jade shops in Singapore and Hong Kong. The line drawings are of small carvings in the author’s collection. Summary, G. M. Born, 229–30.
A new style of Olmec jade with string sawing from Costa Rica
Conference Paper
Balser, C.S. (1969) A new style of Olmec jade with string sawing from Costa Rica. Verhandlungen des XXXVIII Internationalen Amerikanistenkongresses Kongresses, Munich: Kommissionsverlag Klaus Renner, pp. 243–247.
Record No. 28581 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Balser describes a distinctive type of Costa Rican jade carving that he relates stylistically to Olmec traditions and examines the use of string sawing in its manufacture. String sawing—using a fibrous cord with an abrasive to cut hard stone—permitted interior cuts and openwork forms and left characteristic channels that provide evidence of the working technique. The paper places the object within the broader development of pre-Columbian jade lapidary traditions and the relationships between Costa Rican and Mesoamerican jade working.
Estudio sobre jadeítas y albititas de Guatemala
Study of jadeitites and albitites from Guatemala
Journal Article
Silva, Z.C.G.a. (1969) Estudio sobre jadeítas y albititas de Guatemala. [Study of jadeitites and albitites from Guatemala] Boletín Geologico, No. N5, 22 pp..
Record No. 28423 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | Language: in Spanish | not seen
Silva presents a mineralogical and geological study of jadeitites and albitites from Guatemala, examining their mineral composition, textures, and occurrence. The study describes jadeite-bearing rocks and associated albite-rich rocks and considers their relationships within the regional geological setting. Particular attention is given to the mineralogical characteristics of the jadeitites, their associated minerals, and variations in composition and appearance. The work represents an early geological investigation of Guatemalan jadeite and is significant for documenting natural jadeitite occurrences in Guatemala and distinguishing them from associated albititic rocks.
Chilgoku kodai saigyoku zuigyoku (Ceremonial jade in ancient China)
Journal Article
Hayashi, M. (1969) Chilgoku kodai saigyoku zuigyoku (Ceremonial jade in ancient China). Tôhô Gakuhô • Journal of Oriental Studies, No. 40, March, pp. 161–323.
Record No. 7145 | Sinkankas/Born No.: 2820; NIB | not seen
Hayashi Minao (林巳奈夫) presents an extensive archaeological and textual study of the ceremonial and insignial jades of ancient China, attempting to identify the forms and functions of jade objects known from excavations with the terminology preserved in early Chinese ritual texts. He examines such major types as bi 璧, cong 琮, gui 圭, and related ceremonial forms, tracing their morphology and use from the Neolithic through the Shang, Zhou, and later periods and comparing excavated specimens with descriptions in texts such as the Zhouli. The study includes detailed typological comparisons and numerous illustrations and addresses questions of ritual function, status symbolism, chronology, and the changing interpretation of archaic jade forms. It became an important reference for subsequent scholarship on early Chinese ceremonial jade; for example, Hayashi’s identifications and typologies are repeatedly cited in the Smithsonian’s Jades for Life and Death catalogue.
Chinese Jade Through the Centuries From Private and Museum Collections
Book
Hartman, J.M. (1968) Chinese Jade Through the Centuries From Private and Museum Collections. New York, China Institute In America, 43 pp.
Record No. 7149 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Nephrite jade has been discovered in Washington
Journal Article
McLeod, D.L. (1968) Nephrite jade has been discovered in Washington. Lapidary Journal, Vol. 22, No. 8, November, pp. 1034–1037.
Record No. 4478 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Metal and jade in lower Central America
Conference Paper
Balser, C.S. (1968) Metal and jade in lower Central America. Actas y memorias del XXXVII Congresso Internacional de Americanistas, Republica Argentina, 1966, Buenos Aires: Congresso Internacional de Americanistas, pp. 57–66.
Record No. 4370 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
The conference included many papers on jade in Mesoamerica.
The Bejeweled Summary of the Origin of the Khan: A History of the Eastern Mongols to 1662
Book
Ssanang Ssetsen, C. (1967) The Bejeweled Summary of the Origin of the Khan: A History of the Eastern Mongols to 1662. Bloomington, IN, Mongolia Society, Indiana University, Occasional Papers, No. 2, Part 1 , 89 pp.
Record No. 16534 | ISBN/ISSN: 9780910000000 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
El problema del jade metal y materiales asociados en América Central
Conference Paper
Stone, D. (1966) El problema del jade metal y materiales asociados en América Central. Actas y Memorias del XXXVII Congresso Internacional de Americanistas, Buenos Aires
Record No. 28734 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Aboriginal jade use in the New World
Conference Paper
Stirling, M.W. (1966) Aboriginal jade use in the New World. Actas y Memorias del XXXVII Congresso Internacional de Americanistas, Buenos Aires
Record No. 28732 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
A Study on Ancient Jade Craftsmanship
古代玉作の研究/ Kodai Tamatsukuri no Kenkyū
Book
Teramura, M. (1966) A Study on Ancient Jade Craftsmanship. [古代玉作の研究/ Kodai Tamatsukuri no Kenkyū] Tokyo, 吉川弘文館 [Yoshikawa Kobunkan], 8+ 225 pp., 20 plates
Record No. 7167 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | Language: in Japanese | not seen
This is a major archaeological study of ancient Japanese bead and jade-working (tama-zukuri), examining the materials, manufacturing techniques, workshops, and archaeological remains associated with the production of personal ornaments. Teramura draws particularly on excavated workshop sites and evidence for successive stages of manufacture to reconstruct ancient working methods and the organization of production. The study encompasses ornaments made from jade and other stone materials and considers their technological and archaeological development from the prehistoric through Kofun periods. Published as No. 3 of the Kokugakuin University Archaeological Research Reports, the work became an important foundation for the subsequent archaeological study of Japanese bead-making sites and manufacturing technology.
Chinese Art from the Collection of H. M. King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden
Book
Gyllensvärd, B. and Pope, J.A. (1966) Chinese Art from the Collection of H. M. King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden. New York, Asia House Gallery, 147 pp.
Record No. 5932 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
El jade precolombino de América
Journal Article
Balser, C. (1965) El jade precolombino de América. Boletín de la Asociación de Amigos del Museo Nacional de Costa Rica, Vol. 15, pp. 1–7.
Record No. 28599 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | not seen
Was ist “Maw-sit-sit” aus Birma
What is “maw-sit-sit” from Burma
Journal Article
Fischer, W. (1965) Was ist “Maw-sit-sit” aus Birma. [What is “maw-sit-sit” from Burma] Deutsche Goldschmiede-Zeitung, No. 11, pp. 1167–1170.
Record No. 16950 | Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB | Language: in German | not seen
Referenced by Gübelin in his article on maw-sit-sit in Lapis magazine.
Exploring the Literature of Jade
Jade literature spans gemology, mineralogy, archaeology, art history, mining, carving and connoisseurship, and includes works on both jadeite and nephrite from around the world.
For an introduction to collecting books on this subject, read Hidden Treasure — Collecting the Literature of Jade.
About Four Treasures
Four Treasures is Lotus Gemology's freely accessible gemological reference database. Use the full database to search by author, title or keyword and explore literature on gemology, mineralogy, jewelry and related fields. Where available, hyperlinks on titles may lead directly to the full publication.