gems, jade, nephrite, China, Chinese jade carving

Since its inauguration in 2007, many distinguished experts and scholars have given the Woolf Jade Lecture. I am no expert or scholar, but I share with Sir John Woolf a great love for Chinese jade. I am grateful for the opportunity to talk about my experience as a collector and lover of Chinese jade.

gems, jadeite, fei cui, Myanmar, treated jadeite, fei cui

In recent years, a new type of treated fei cui that is bleached, filled and dyed has entered the gem market, with most showing vivid colours and high transparency. Ultra-high-resolution microscopy, polarised light microscopy, DiamondView and FTIR are used to compare traditional treated B+C jadeite jade with this new type of treated B+C jadeite jade, with analysis under Raman and UV-Vis. The results show that, due to severe bleaching, more resin in the filling and a different variety of resin, this new B+C jadeite jade has greater transparency than the traditional B+C type. The new B+C type is dyed with an organic agent. The resulting dyed jadeite jade has the same colour but a different tone, and might show a different UV-Vis spectrum. Most samples of this new B+C type do not show a 437 nm absorption line. FTIR spectra of the resin filling (with curing agent) in the new B+C type show a broad absorption peak centred at 1594 cm⁻¹ and an absorption peak around 4052 cm⁻¹. Raman spectra show peaks at 1595 cm⁻¹ and 1142 cm⁻¹.

gems, metals, Arabic mineralogy, ruby, sapphire, spinel, pearl, corundum, history.1, jade, Fischer-Other

The present book is a translation and annotation of a copy of the Persian book Goharnāmeh [Book of Jewels] written by Mohammad ben Mansur. The manuscript has 110 sheets and each page consists of 19 lines. The manuscript is written in Persian in naste’aliq script. Mohammad ben Mansur wrote the manuscript Goharnāmeh for the ruler Uzun Hasan Āq Qoyonlu in the 9th-century hijra (15th century CE), mentioning the name of the son of Sultan Ozun Hasan Āq Qoyonlu, namely Sultan Xalil as well. In the first section of his book, Ben Mansur talks about different types of stones. This part consists of twenty-one parts. In the second section of his book, Ben Mansur explains different types of metals. The present book clearly shows that patterned crucible steel was considered a gohar (jewel) in Persian. The book consists of the following parts; 1. Introduction: This part provides the historical background of the manuscript, its author, and the topics of the manuscript. 2. Goharnāmeh [Book of Jewels] by Mohammad ben Mansur: This part provides a detailed analysis and comparison of similar books of jewels and gems in Persian and places it in its historical context. 3. Mines and farms/fisheries: This part talks about the geographical locations of mines and pearl fisheries as described in the Goharnāmeh, and interestingly, it measures all these locations from the Persian Gulf, Sri Lanka, Egypt, and other locations in comparison to the geographical location of Canary Islands. 4. Classification of stones and animal products: This section describes all precious stones, semi-precious stones, and other stones, animal products, and metals as described in the book Goharnāmeh, and compares its descriptions to the modern geological and scientific descriptions of these items. The precious, semi-precious stones, and other stones include: yāqut (ruby, oriental topaz, white sapphire, pleonaste, oriental emerald, sapphire); emerald; peridot; diamond; chrysoberyl cat’s eye; spinel (shades of red, garnet red, yellow, blue, green, brown, orange and black); turquoise (green and blue); chalcedony (agate and carnelian, blue chalcedony and other colors); precious stones resembling yāqut (zircon, garnet, and bādehenj); onyx; magnet; corundite (emery); malachite; lapis lazuli; jade; rock crystal; amethyst; jetstone; rain stone; jaundice stone; limestone; olive stone; eaglestone; blood stone; milk stone; mouse stone; moonstone; color stone; sleep stone; miskal stone; marcasite;

gems, jade, Chinese jade, nephrite, Chinese jade carving, archaic jade

Lovely catalog of a collection of archaic Chinese jades, with several nice essays.

gems, jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, Myanmar, jade trade, China

In Myanmar, where civil war, repressive government, and the $40 billion a year jade industry have shaped life for decades, everyone is fighting for their own version of the truth. Until the World Shatters, takes us deep into a world in which journalists seek to overcome censorship and intimidation, ethnic minorities wage guerilla war against a government they claim refuses to grant basic human rights; devout Buddhists launch violent anti-Muslim campaigns; and artists try to build their own havens of free expression. In the bustling city of Yangon we meet Phoe Wa, a young photojournalist pursuing his dream at a time when the government is jailing reporters and nationalist voices are on the rise. In Myanmar's far north, we meet Bum Tsit who is caught between the insurgent army his family supports and the business and military leaders his career depends on. His attempt to get rich quickly leads him to Myanmar's biggest, worst kept secret: the connection between the jade industry and the longest running war in the world. Until the World Shatters weaves Phoe Wa and Bum Tsit's stories to reveal a larger portrait of Myanmar's history, politics, and people in a time and place where public trust has disappeared.

gems, jade, amphibole jade, nephrite, China, Chinese jade carving, archaic jade, animal motifs

This paper explores the significance of animal motifs in Neolithic China through the analysis of jade figurines and shell mosaics. It argues that these motifs served not only aesthetic purposes but also had spiritual and protective functions in the lives of the elite and the deceased. The paper highlights the connection between humans, animals, and cosmological beliefs, suggesting that these early artworks reflect a complex understanding of interspecies relations and their implications for contemporary life.

gems, jade, Fei cui, pyroxene jade, history of jadeite, fei cui, omphacite, kosmochlor

In the 15th Home Gemmology webinar, with the support of CIBJO - The World Jewellery Confederation, the discussion is made around the nomenclature debate that is happening at the time of broadcast (May 2020) around the so-called jadeite jade that is known in China as 翡翠 fei cui . To address the scientific angle of this matter, I've invited Dr Edward Liu FGA, Vice-Chairman of the Gemmological Association of Hong Kong, following the discussion presented at the last CIBJO Congress. At the time of the recording, a CIBJO working group is currently discussing this nomenclature with a resolution supposed be presented in the near future, having in mind that the mission statement of CIBJO is much about promoting consumer confidence. Edward Johnson, co-editor of the Home Gemmology webinar series, also shares his personal experience as a westerner that loved in Hong Kong in the late 1990 and dealt directly with jade.

gems, jade, pyroxene jade, jadeite, fei cui, omphacite, kosmochlor, jade nomenclature

This article is a brief report of a special Fei Cui session at the CIBJO congress 2019 (Bahrain) lead by the author and Mr Kent Wong (Managing Director of Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group and Chairman of the HK Jewellers’ & Goldsmiths’ Association) as representatives of the GAHK. Comprehensive scientific studies have resulted in a new definition of jade. It has, therefore, been suggested that the term “Fei Cui” should replace “Jadeite” as a family name under the umbrella term “jade”, covering the three members: jadeite jade, omphacite jade and kosmochlor jade. CIBJO is currently considering the proposal that “Fei Cui” should be included in their Blue Books.

gems, jade, nephrite, China, Chinese jade carving

Objects are the heart of a museum, hence an inventory of objects is extremely important. Museum staff working with collections should consider object inventories as significant as the objects themselves. In the course of time, inventories made at different periods provide information not only of the objects, but also the situations under which the objects were used. The collections of the Palace Museum in Beijing (PM) and the National Palace Museum in Taipei (NPM) respectively, came mainly from the Qing court, which included the Forbidden City, the palaces in Shenyang and Chengde, and other travel palaces in the vicinity of Beijing. The Qing court took stock of the objects in the various palaces and created inventories, which are generally referred to as ‘Display Archives’. The two Palace Museums culled the relevant information from the Display Archives to form their own records. I shall use one object in the National Palace Museum as a case study, to reveal how artefacts were displayed in the palaces, and to shed light on the tastes of the emperors.

gems, jade, archaic jade, China, Chinese jade carving, nephrite

Jade, which is one of the most characteristic materials constituting Chinese artifacts, signifies cultural differences between ancient Chinese and western civilizations. One of the most important typical characteristics of ancient jade artifacts recovered through archeological excavations is color alterations due to human activity and natural weathering, which has led to an area of intensive research in archeology. “Alteration” refers to chemical component and structural changes in jade artifacts caused by human activity and natural weathering, which is different from the term in geology. In this study, Raman spectroscopy was used to analyze six color alterations on ancient jade artifacts unearthed from the Jinsha Site in Sichuan Province, a region famous for artifacts with colorful alterations. The colorful alterations were observed to originate from corrosion products of bronzeware. The green, black, yellow, blue, purple, and white alterations were due to malachite, tenorite, pyromorphite, azurite, diaboleite, and cassiterite, respectively. Meanwhile, organic matter and hypertoxic arsenolite were first found on ancient jade artifacts.