jade, jadeite, fei cui, Burma, gems, Broken Bangle, Fischer-Other

Hansford examines the changing meanings of the Chinese term fei cui, shared by kingfishers, their ornamental plumage, and the jade rock used in modern jewellery, to clarify the historical distinction between Burmese fei cui and Chinese nephrite jade. Drawing on literary, lexicographical, and lapidary sources, he traces references to kingfisher feathers from ancient poetry through their use as tribute, decoration, and personal adornment. He suggests that the component words originally denoted red and blue or green feathers rather than separate male and female birds. Although some early passages might refer to an ornamental stone, the first unambiguous reference to a hard material occurs in a sixth-century description of a brush-rest. Turquoise offers an obvious colour comparison, but Hansford finds no literary evidence connecting it with the name. More precise Sung accounts describe a lustrous dark-green material associated with Khotan, which he identifies as fine nephrite jade. He considers the accompanying claim that this stone could powder gold partly explicable through beliefs concerning the spiritual powers and relative supremacy of jade and precious metals, while also allowing possible confusion with the golden pyrite flecks in lapis lazuli. These early occurrences of the name therefore cannot establish an ancient Chinese acquaintance with Burmese fei cui. Hansford contrasts the composition and texture of the two jade materials, describing the interlocking microscopic fibres of nephrite jade and the granular crystalline aggregate of Burmese fei cui, and notes the diagnostic value of specific gravity and refractive index. He questions the frequently repeated story that a thirteenth-century Yunnan trader accidentally discovered Burmese fei cui, finding no supporting Chinese tradition and arguing that the available evidence places its working in China no earlier than the eighteenth century. Increasing imports through Yunnan subsequently encouraged its designation as Yunnan jade, although he attributes the material itself to Burma. He outlines extraction around Tawmaw and the movement of rough stone through Mogaung, both overland into Yunnan and by river and sea to Chinese markets. Initially depreciated for its comparatively glassy appearance, fei cui gained acceptance through its distinctive emerald and apple greens, eventually commanding prices above nephrite jade. A retrospective account by Chi Yün illustrates this rapid transformation in taste during the eighteenth century. Hansford proposes that the prestigious older name was revived for the imported rock, with its green and russet-red colours reinforcing the association with kingfisher plumage. The article demonstrates how the continuity of an attractive name can obscure changes in the material, provenance, and cultural valuation of the stone it denotes.