Gem library
Jadeite
Burma's imperial jade
Jadeite is one of the two minerals called jade, and by far the more precious. Burmese «imperial jade» — emerald green, translucent, even in colour — commands prices exceeding diamond, and sits at the summit of the Asian coloured-stone market.
- Hardness (Mohs)
- 6.5 – 7
- Density
- 3.30 – 3.38
- Crystal system
- Monoclinic
- Refractive index
- 1.652 – 1.688
- Cleavage
- Perfect on crystals, absent in the aggregate
Mineralogical identity
- Family
- Jadeite — pyroxene group (inosilicates)
- Species
- Jadeite
- Variety
- Imperial jade, lavender jade, commercial jade
- Chemical formula
- NaAlSi₂O₆
- Crystal system
- Monoclinic (interlocking microcrystalline aggregate)
- Classification
- Precious stone
- Rarity
- Very rare
- Indicative price
- €50 – 50,000/ct
Etymology
From the Spanish piedra de ijada, «stone of the flank», the conquistadors having seen it used in Mexico against kidney colic. «Jadeite» names the mineral species, separated from nephrite only in 1863 by Alexis Damour.
Physical & optical properties
- Hardness (Mohs)
- 6.5 – 7
- Density
- 3.30 – 3.38
- Refractive index
- 1.652 – 1.688
- Birefringence
- 0.012 (rarely measurable)
- Cleavage
- Perfect on crystals, absent in the aggregate
- Fracture
- Splintery, exceptional toughness
- Lustre
- Vitreous to greasy, waxy on fracture
- Diaphaneity
- Translucent to opaque
- UV fluorescence
- None
- Pleochroism
- None
- Colours
- green, white, lavender, red, black
Formation, geology & history
Two jades, two minerals
For millennia a single word described two different rocks. Nephrite is an amphibole, jadeite a pyroxene; they share neither chemistry, density nor value. The French chemist Alexis Damour separated them in 1863. China worked nephrite from the Neolithic onward, but it was Burmese jadeite, arriving in quantity in the eighteenth century under the Qing, that became the jade of prestige. Today, saying «jade» without qualification is a serious commercial imprecision: between ordinary nephrite and imperial jade, the price ratio can reach one to ten thousand.
Formation and toughness
Jadeite forms only under extreme conditions: high pressure and relatively low temperature, which is to say in subduction zones, where one oceanic plate dives beneath another. It then rises along faults, hosted in serpentinites. Its structure — a felt of interlocking microcrystals — gives it a toughness unmatched among gems: it can be carved into thin rings, into single-block chains, into resonant plaques. Neolithic peoples in Europe and Asia made axes of it because it does not split. That is its cardinal quality: not hardness, which is moderate, but resistance to fracture.
Imperial, lavender, and the art of judgement
Jade is assessed on three axes the Chinese trade calls colour, translucency and texture. The ideal, imperial jade, combines a faintly bluish green of intense saturation, a translucency that lets light be sensed several millimetres deep, and a grain so fine no structure shows under the loupe. Then come lavender jades, coloured by iron and manganese, white jades, reds from surface oxidation, and blacks. Judgement is made by eye and hand, without instruments: it is connoisseur's knowledge, and the Hong Kong market plays it out at auctions of tens of millions of euros.
Treatments: grades A, B and C
The jade market has codified its treatments, which is both useful and dangerous. Grade A means natural jade, possibly surface-waxed, with no other intervention. Grade B has been acid-bleached to remove brown staining, then impregnated with polymer resin: it is lighter, more translucent, and degrades over time. Grade C is dyed. Grades B and C are worth a fraction of A, and nothing in appearance separates them reliably: it is infrared spectroscopy that reveals resin. For any piece of value, a certificate explicitly stating «grade A» or «no treatment detected» is essential.
How to recognise it
- The soundSuspend a jadeite bangle or plaque and tap it gently with another piece of jade: it rings clear and crystalline, and resonates. Glass and serpentine give a dull, short knock. A test Asian dealers still perform every day.
- Texture under the loupeAt 10×, jadeite shows a granular fibrous structure, sometimes described as orange peel on polished surfaces. Glass is perfectly homogeneous; serpentine looks waxy and fibrous in a different way.
- DensityAt 3.3, jadeite is markedly heavier than serpentine (2.6) or glass (2.5). A jadeite bangle has a surprising heft: it is the first reflex of an experienced buyer.
Imitations, treatments & confusions
- Serpentine, «new jade», «Korean jade»The most widespread imitation. Serpentine is far softer — hardness 3 to 5, it scratches with a steel point — lighter, and frankly waxy in lustre. Florid trade names are a warning signal in themselves.
- Dyed quartzite and «Malaysia jade»White quartzite coloured green, very common in pendants. Under the loupe the dye concentrates in fissures and between grains, forming a green network on a white ground. Nothing to do with jade.
- Grade B resin-impregnated jadeThe most costly fraud, because it involves real jade. Acid bleaching weakens the stone and the resin yellows within a few years. Only infrared analysis settles it: for a serious piece, insist on a grading certificate.
Deposits & origins
Myanmar (Uru valley, Hpakant and Tawmaw, Kachin State — over 90 % of the world's gem-quality jade), Guatemala (Motagua valley, the jade of the Maya), Russia (polar Urals), Japan (Itoigawa), Kazakhstan, United States (California)
Care & precautions
- Warm soapy water and a soft cloth: grade A jadeite fears neither water nor soap.
- Avoid ultrasonic cleaning on carved or treated pieces, and absolutely on any grade B jade, whose resin degrades.
- Do not expose to strong heat or acids; prolonged contact with perfumes and cosmetics dulls the polish.
- Jade does scratch: store it alone, and avoid wearing it alongside jewellery set with hard stones.
Traditions & crystal healing
- Chakras
- Heart
- Zodiac signs
- Libra · Virgo · Taurus
- Element
- Earth · Water
- Month
- March
No stone carries a comparable cultural charge in Asia. There jade symbolises the five Confucian virtues — benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, courage, purity — protects its wearer and, it is said, absorbs misfortune in their place: a bangle that breaks is held to have taken a blow meant for the person wearing it. In the West, crystal healing treats it as a stone of balance, serenity and longevity, linked to the heart.
The virtues described here belong to tradition and cultural heritage. They are in no way medical advice and never replace a consultation.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between jadeite and nephrite?
Two distinct minerals. Jadeite is a sodium pyroxene, denser (3.3) and far more precious; nephrite is a calcium-magnesium amphibole at 2.9, the commoner and cheaper of the two. Only jadeite produces imperial jade.
How do I know whether my jade is treated?
Not reliably by eye. Warning signs are too perfect a translucency, too even a green, colour concentrated in fissures. Certainty comes from infrared spectroscopy: ask for a certificate stating grade A.
Why is jade so expensive in Asia and not in Europe?
Because markets form where demand is. In China and Hong Kong, imperial jade is the prestige stone par excellence, carried by a millennia-old culture; in Europe, where diamond holds that place, the same pieces struggle to find buyers.