A precious gemstone highly admired for its unique color and considered to possess spiritual quality, jade has been used by Chinese to create ornamental items for over 10,000 years. The tradition of making jade items began as early as the Neolithic period, and continued through every stage of China's history into the present day. The profound influence of jade on Chinese culture can be seen in almost all aspects of the life of Chinese: custom, mannerism, literature, philosophy, art, and spiritual beliefs. As recent as 60 years ago, exquisitely-made jade ornaments were still one of the things used by the Chinese upper class to show their status and wealth. In Beijing, take a private tour with a Beijing tour operator to discover beautiful jade works in the city's amazing local shops.
Jade in all its varieties is endowed with an amazingly soft, warm appearance that gives a mystical quality to its incredible hardness. On the smooth, hard surface, the rich color looks to have a touch of purity and ephemeral beauty that seems to have been accidentally captured in eternity. Ever since its discovery inside raw stone, Chinese fell in love with this unique gem and gave it a high status among other gems. One of Chinese' ancient beliefs is jade not only represents the highest form of beauty, but symbolizes all that is desirable about a virtuous human being. "The wise have likened jade to virtue", so said Confucius, the most influential ancient Chinese philosopher.
Chinese discovered jade probably through the practice of making stone tools. Artifacts unearthed in two pre-historic Chinese cultures, Liangzu and Hongshan, included a large, amazing variety of jade items used both for utilitarian and ornamental purposes. The mining of jade had already lasted for thousands of years before one of the earliest historical records appeared about 3,000 years ago that took note of this practice. Ancient jade items discovered in burial sites indicate that early on the possession of jade was considered an exclusive privilege of the rich and the ruling class.
In later times, as Chinese society became more and more complex, and the skills of artisans to make decorative works were greatly improved, jade works became a popular form of art. According to historical account, during the Zhou dynasty one of the most popular practices among the upper class people was wearing different jade ornaments to show one's taste in art and knowledge of jade. In the Song dynasty, the fashion of jade advanced to a new level. Creative artisans from this period invented many different types of jade works to meet people's demand to appreciate the beauty of jade in new ways. Ming and Qing dynasties saw a peak of the development of jade art. New design repeatedly appeared during this time.
In Chinese, the character for jade, "yu", can be used to mean a variety of gemstones, a phenomenon probably resulting from the immense influence jade has on Chinese culture. As a matter of fact, there are only two types of gemstones that can be labeled as jade - nephrite and jadeite.
Nephrite - All jade works made in China before 1800s were believed to be nephrite. Called "soft jade" in Chinese, it measures 5.5 - 6.0 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, somewhat softer than jadeite which measures 6.5 - 7.0. Nephrites with different colors are put into different classes, the highest class being "mutton fat", which shows a cream, white color. Other main colors include white, gray, green, dark green, yellow, and black. The Khotan region in Xinjiang province produced the most famous nephrite. But due to overexploitation, the reserve there was depleted.
Jadeite - Jadeite is a rarer and more precious type of jade than nephrite. After introduced from Burma to China in the 19th century, it immediately captured the attention of the ruling class with its exquisite beauty and wide range of colors and became their favorite. It shows over 20 different colors, emerald green being the most admired.
In many fantastic local shops in Beijing, you can find gorgeous traditional jade ornaments that are made by some of the best artisans in China. With so many fake jade products out there, it's best to find a Beijing guide to assist you in your shopping.
Jade in all its varieties is endowed with an amazingly soft, warm appearance that gives a mystical quality to its incredible hardness. On the smooth, hard surface, the rich color looks to have a touch of purity and ephemeral beauty that seems to have been accidentally captured in eternity. Ever since its discovery inside raw stone, Chinese fell in love with this unique gem and gave it a high status among other gems. One of Chinese' ancient beliefs is jade not only represents the highest form of beauty, but symbolizes all that is desirable about a virtuous human being. "The wise have likened jade to virtue", so said Confucius, the most influential ancient Chinese philosopher.
Chinese discovered jade probably through the practice of making stone tools. Artifacts unearthed in two pre-historic Chinese cultures, Liangzu and Hongshan, included a large, amazing variety of jade items used both for utilitarian and ornamental purposes. The mining of jade had already lasted for thousands of years before one of the earliest historical records appeared about 3,000 years ago that took note of this practice. Ancient jade items discovered in burial sites indicate that early on the possession of jade was considered an exclusive privilege of the rich and the ruling class.
In later times, as Chinese society became more and more complex, and the skills of artisans to make decorative works were greatly improved, jade works became a popular form of art. According to historical account, during the Zhou dynasty one of the most popular practices among the upper class people was wearing different jade ornaments to show one's taste in art and knowledge of jade. In the Song dynasty, the fashion of jade advanced to a new level. Creative artisans from this period invented many different types of jade works to meet people's demand to appreciate the beauty of jade in new ways. Ming and Qing dynasties saw a peak of the development of jade art. New design repeatedly appeared during this time.
In Chinese, the character for jade, "yu", can be used to mean a variety of gemstones, a phenomenon probably resulting from the immense influence jade has on Chinese culture. As a matter of fact, there are only two types of gemstones that can be labeled as jade - nephrite and jadeite.
Nephrite - All jade works made in China before 1800s were believed to be nephrite. Called "soft jade" in Chinese, it measures 5.5 - 6.0 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, somewhat softer than jadeite which measures 6.5 - 7.0. Nephrites with different colors are put into different classes, the highest class being "mutton fat", which shows a cream, white color. Other main colors include white, gray, green, dark green, yellow, and black. The Khotan region in Xinjiang province produced the most famous nephrite. But due to overexploitation, the reserve there was depleted.
Jadeite - Jadeite is a rarer and more precious type of jade than nephrite. After introduced from Burma to China in the 19th century, it immediately captured the attention of the ruling class with its exquisite beauty and wide range of colors and became their favorite. It shows over 20 different colors, emerald green being the most admired.
In many fantastic local shops in Beijing, you can find gorgeous traditional jade ornaments that are made by some of the best artisans in China. With so many fake jade products out there, it's best to find a Beijing guide to assist you in your shopping.
About the Author:
A. Lao writes about Chinese arts and crafts. He assists a personal shopping assistant who helps tourists find unique Chinese items. From time to time, he plans Beijing tours.
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