Jade Type
JADE TYPE
1. Hetian Jade
Hetian jade, a kind of nephrite, is the first of the four famous jade in China. It occupies the first position in terms of jade quality or history and culture. The seed material produced in the Hetian area of Xinjiang, China has the best texture, with a hardness of 6 to 6.5 and a density of 2.8 to 3.1. The toughness is the strongest among all jade, so it is not easy to damage. The luster is generally glass and grease luster, from opaque to translucent, the color changes greatly, including white, blue and white, cyan, yellow, green, black, etc. Therefore, from the color, there are white jade, celadonish jade, jasper, topaz, black jade, sugar jade and other types. Generally, when choosing Hetian jade, it can be considered in terms of whiteness, oil content, texture, hardness, toughness, leather color, gloss, brightness, weight, cracks, design and engraving.
2. Jadite
Jadeite is mainly produced in Myanmar. Thailand, Japan, the United States, China and other places have jadeite rough minerals, but 90% of it comes from Myitkyina, Myanmar. It contains different color-causing ions inside, so it shows a variety of colors. For example, jadeite appears green when contains chromium, which is called emerald; appears red, yellow or maroon when contains iron, which are called emerald.The hardness is generally between 6.5 and 7, and the density is between 3.2 and 3.4. It has strong toughness, second only to Hetian jade, and is generally glassy to grease gloss, opaque, slightly transparent, translucent, transparent, etc. Colors range from green, red, blue, purple, white, yellow, blue, black, etc. From the texture, there are: glass ground, ice ground, waxy species, hibiscus species, white ground green, anthocyanin, oil green, golden silk species, bean species, dry green species, horse tooth species and so on. In the daily evaluation of jadeite, it is generally evaluated from the aspects of species, water, color, transparency, cleanliness, density, cotton cracking, size, and design process.
3. Aventurine
The main component of Aventurine jade is silica. Like agate and crystal, it belongs to silica jade and quartzite. This type of jade is widely distributed, has a large storage capacity, and is relatively cheap. Like this kind of jade, only those with fine texture and beautiful color can be used as jade materials, and generally can only be appreciated as stones.
Aventurine jade has a hardness of 7, and a density of about 2.66. It feels light and elegant, with fine texture, slightly transparent to translucent, and glassy luster. Most of the colors are uniform, mainly oil green, dark green, and emerald green. Because of its low price, uniform green and good transparency, it also has a certain market and is favored by some female friends.
4. Chrysoprase
The term chrysoprase comes from ancient Greece, which means "golden green quartz", which is a kind of green in different tones, slightly transparent to translucent chalcedony. Its gemological name is "Australian Jade".
Chalcedony is attractive in color and is one of the most valuable quartz ore, which is easy to confuse with jadeite.
Green chalcedony is green, often with yellow and gray tones, and the color is uniform. Slightly transparent to translucent, high-quality ones are more vivid apple green. Wax-like luster.
The hardness is 6.5-7. The specific gravity is slightly lower than quartz because of its porosity, at 2.57-2.64.
The refractive index is 1.53-1.54. With a conchoidal fracture, no cleavage.
The difference between jade and green chalcedony is: jade has emerald nature, and its color is often uneven. The refractive index is 1.66, and the specific gravity is 3.24-3.43, both of which are significantly higher than the green chalcedony.
5. Lapis Lazuli
Lapis Lazuli, hardness 5-6, density 2.7-2.9, color is mainly blue, with white patches, opaque, glass and grease luster, generally white calcite blocks or white lines or yellow patches of yellow iron on the surface mine. It is because of these unique colors, blue, white, and yellow, that they are very easy to distinguish from other jade. Many fake lapis lazuli, mostly synthetic lapis lazuli and sodalite, have a light hand feeling, and the synthetic lapis lazuli feels too uniform in color , Artificial white or yellow patches are relatively evenly distributed on the main body, while natural lapis lazuli has uneven color, white and yellow patches have different sizes and uneven contours. Natural lapis lazuli can appear blue halo under the light.
The lapis lazuli hue is like the sky, with pure and deep sky blue, so it is liked by the emperors of the past. There are often lapis lazuli in the funerals of the ancient emperors, hoping to walk the road to the sky. In ancient times, people grind it into powder for painting. In the paintings of the Thousand Buddha Caves of Mogao Grottoes in China, lapis lazuli was used as the paint, so you can see how precious it is.
