faving ! 'E lor ete All About Colored Gemstones JADE The Fifth Pillar Cy de Tt eT Try A Publication of the International Colored Gemstone Association | (:\“imperial Jade” from Myanmar. Regd nee aa ere aaa Cora) SCD he cuca tes cele eine y eeu Maur s eure Cken Cte eta eaec ut rite deposits at Hetian, Xinjiang Province. The work of China's Brea eminence ek eaters SS eae ad On the road to Mandalay, Where the flyin’-fishes play, An’ the dawn comes up like thunder outer China ‘crost the Bay! ~ Rudyard Kipling, Mandalay M: journey into jade started at age 18, when a friend in- vited me to travel with him to Europe. One thing led to another; Europe became Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and India, and by 1977, | found myself in the dusty upcountry town of Mandalay, Burma, It was there that | saw my first piece of jade. | was smitten and resolved then and there to become a jade trader. Why, I'm not quite sure. | guess it just seemed so damned exotic. Little did | know that | would have a destiny jade. Now — 43 years on — I've spent much of my life working with this stone. As look back upon that road, | am sill stunned at how every twist and tum revealed new secrets, new adven- tures, new friends. What follows is my story of a lifetime spentin pursuit of heaven. Road Trips By 1979, | was living in Bangkok and studying gemology. 1 had found my calling. This was a subject so fascinating, | lived, breathed every bit | could get, from books to magazines to the stories shared with me by colleagues and mentors. But there is only so much one c: y ma, India, Sri Lanka, wherever there were gems, | went. Many journeys were made to the Thai/Burmese border outpost of Mae Sot, for this was a major eniry point for freedom. As | dosed my eyes at night, t was not sug ; but dancing rubies, sapphires, spinels and jades that moved through my head. My dream was to visit the sources of those gems. But that would have to wait. Maori Greenstone In the early 1990s, | was invited to lecture in New Zealand. (One day walking down an Auckiand street, | happened upon a small shop selling jade. At the time I had only a cursory knot ‘edge of what the Mzori’s called pounamu, a green nephrite from the South island. But in ths litle shop, | discovered another world, the most beautiful carved jades | had ever laid eyesupon AAs | purchased one for my wife, Wimon, the shop assistant told me that | had made an excellent choice, relating that the piece had been carved by none other than Donn Salt, New Zealand's premier jade carver. | exited not just with the carving, but also with a book written by Salt celebrating New Zealand's talented carvers. Thai work was so fresh and contemporary, itlefta last- ing impression on me. Opportune ‘That opportunity finally happened in 1996. Coming back to Mandalay from Mogok, | asked a miltary officer if my friend and | could visit the jade mines. When he said yes, | had to stop myself from immediately kissing his feet The result was a series of epic journeys to the jade mines, ‘opening to the Western gemological world a place that had not been visited by outsiders since Eduard Gilbelin in the early 1960s. From that point on, Iwas on a mission to learn as much as possible about ths incredible stone we call jade. The road to Burma's jade mines on the author's first visit in 1996. It took three days through the mud to mate itto Hpakan, known to locals as "Little Hong Kong." (Photo: Richard W. Hughes) International Colored Ger Donn Salt is considered by many to be the top jade carver in New Zealand. This piece, purchased ky the author in Auckland, isan example of kis work. (Photo: Wimon Manoratkul) Defining Jade — More Than Just a Stone Certain natural materials have been collected and admired by humans since the dawn of time. Gold is noted for its rarity malleabilty anc abilty to avoid oxidation, For these reasons, it has been prized by vidually all cultures and peoples. But while gold has been highly sought aff did not attain a status of supreme reverence. For that type of adulation, we must look to anether product from the earthly realm: jade. YA, the Chinese word for jade, is one of the oldest in the Chinese language with its pictograph () said to have origi nated in 2950 BC, when the transition from knotted cords to written signs occurred. The pictograph represents three piec- of jade, pierced and threaded with a string that together represent virtue, beauty and rarity. The addition of the dian stroke (dot) completes the character and distinguishes it from +E (wang), the character for emperor. Just how fundamental this character is in the Chinese language is illustrated by the modem form of the character for kingdom, fl (guS), which has the jade character enclosed in a boundary to represent “coun. try." Thus the jade character is a component of the name for the country of China: Zhongguo, *|+{s. The English name jade ‘comes from the Spanish piedra do jada, literally “stone of the flank of the lower back," from the Mesoamerican native belief that jade combats kidney ailments.A Tale of Two Gems For some eight thousand years, jade has been treasured by the Chinese. While there are a number of different sources in China, the most important are the White Jade (Yurungkash) and Black (a.k.a. Green) Jade (Karakash) Rivers near the town of Hetian (AIH; a.k.a. Knotan) in western China’s Xinjiang Province (Chinese Turkestan). From these deposits comes a creamy white to greenish stone, with the most valuable being pure white, termed “mutton fat.” Sitting astride one of the old Silk Roads, it frst entered China proper via traders from Central Asia. Whle the discovery of jadeite jade in Myanmar dates tack to the 6th Century ao or earfier, and its first entry into China was dated by British Sino! gist Wiliam Warry in the 13th Century (Hertz, 1912), it did not come into prominence untl the Qing Dynasty (16441914). ‘When Emperor Qianlong saw a piece of this white-to-bnight green jade, he was besotted. Learning it came from a widd coun- tty south of Yunnan, he sent columns of troops down to secure a supply. But even the crack Chinese armies were no match for the difficult terrain and fierce Kachin hill people. They returned empty handed, beaten back by malaria, mud and tibespeople who toyed with the outsiders from the north. Thereafter, Chi- nose traders generally never attempted to ventura into the hills, to the mines, content to deal with the Kachin on the compara- tively tranquil plains at Mogaung. The Chinese understood this material was difforont from the Hetian jade, and named the vivid green variety fei cui (383%) or kingfisher jade, due to its resemblance to the color of the foathers of the kingfishor bird. Mutton-Fat Jade In the Western world, the term jade today is used for two different rocks, jadeite and nephrite. However, in China, tra- tionally, there were four “great jades": Hetian jade (nephrite; Xinjiang province), Xiuyan jade (serpentine: Xiuyen, Liaoning province), Dushan jade (rock mixture of anorthite, zoisite and homblende; Nanyang, Henan province) and turquoise (Yun, Hubei province). Considering just jadeite and nephrite, while each of these cousins shares certain characteristics, in other ways, they could not be less alike. YinvYang. They are two en- tirely different bridges to heaven. Although I have been involved with jade since 1977, it was only when | visited China's famous Guangznou jade market in 62 In¢olor Fall/Winter 2020 In 1997, | was back in Burma for more, this time in the dry season. Crossing a small hill from Hpakan, was a dig that still leaves me stunned. Thousands of miners carrying rock out of a huge hole. It was one of the most extraordinary sights I've ever seen in my Ife, like witnessing the building the pyramids. (Photo: Fred Ward) 2009 that | was exposed to Chinese mutton-fat jade (nephiite). It was love at first sight: now I better understood the deeper attraction of jade. While | once believed that only jadeite had high value as a gem material, this opinion was born of ignorance. The white Chinese nephrite is a lovely gem material possessing a subime beauty allits own and today fetches prices that sometimes com- pete with the finest imperial jaceite. Today, this “mutton-fat” jade from Hetian is considered to be the finest in the world, with the highest prices being paid for white stones from the rivers. Material quarried nearby from hard rock mines is much less valuable as it may have hidden cracks and it lacks the natural surface staining of the river stones that is prized by carvers. Whereas jadeite is lipsticked gloss and neon, the beauty of Chinese nephrite involves a tar different experience, where depth and feeling rule. Having now experienced both worlds, | must say that, as | grow older, | tend to be drawn more to the world of Hetian jade. Burmese jadeite is bikini eye candy. In contrast, Hetian jade involves hidden beauty, and thus discov ered via sweet caress and touch. Even the mannerin which the gems are displayed is radically diferent. Jadeite struts her stuff under gaudy lights surrounded by the sparkle of diamonds; in contrast, nephrite is placed in front of the Public like fine art, with dark backgrounds and generous space, befitting a stone that the Chinese consider more valuable than siver or gold - the most precious substance on Earth, literally, the Middle Kingdom's bridge to heaven. High Nubility Ever since | discovered Chinese mutton fat jade, | had a de- sire to visit the source. Hetian is located in western China just north of the Kunlun mountains that separate China from Paki- sian and India. According to Chinese lore, jade is masculine. Following this logio, to attract it requires something feminine. For example, it was told that jade could be caught f naked vigins were sent into the rivers on mooniit autumn nighis Thus, i was that, in the summer of 2017, | set out for Hetian with the highest of anticipation, visions of virgins dancing in my head. Alas, upon arrival, there were no na- ked nubiles at the river, just one old man with a shovel. ‘When we asked ifhe had found any jade, he reached down nto his bag and produced a boulder. We quickly bought It InColorMagazine.com; Gemstone.org, Map of China showing the location of ‘major jade mines, markets, and carving centers. The major source of Chinese nephrite is Hetian (0.k.a. Khotan) in western China's Xinjiang Province, while jadeite comes from the Hakan region of Upper Myanmar (Burma). (Map: Richard W. Hughes) Booked Ihave a terminal love of books and whenever | travel, | try to make time for what some refer to as a “gentle mad- ness.” The first time | visited Shanghai in 2011, | found Fuzhou Rd, alovely street with several great bookstores. Sever- al years later, | was back in Shanghai at the invitation of Tongji University’s “Adam” Zhou Zhengyu. | mentoned to ‘Adam that | wanted to go back to Fuzhou Rd. He said | should first visit the Tongji Bookstore. That turned out to be his of fice and, as | departed, | was overload ‘ed with kilos of books on Chinese jade that he had gifted me. Back in Bangkok, I opened them up and was completely floored. Expecting to see scholarly re- productions of olderjades, Iwas amazed to discover page after age of stunning contemporary designs. YYYYEEESSSS!!! When | later asked Adam if he could ar- range visits to meet some of these carvers he slyly smiled and said: “Of course. They are my friends.” This is how I came to meet China's new jade masters, peo- ple like Ma Hong Wei, who makes jade reproductions of an- cient Chinese bronzes, Yu Ting, who specializes in eggshell thin carvings and Yang Xi, vinose negative space works are as fresh as any contemporary art inthe world. But the carver | most wanted to meet was Wu Desheng. His flowing nudes were the ‘ones that | was most taken by. Wu Desheng is perhaps China's most famous contemporary jade master and has a studio on the outskirts of Shanghai. Built ‘on a large tract of land, itis @ re-creation of a traditional Chinese home, with a square central courtyard. Master Wu was a gra- cious host and gave us a full tour of his compound, with various workshops filed with people carving jade. As we were leaving, Wu casually mentioned that, if | had a piece of jade, he would carve itfor us. YYYYEEESSSSI"! After kissing his feet, | quickly whipped out the jade boulder we had purchased in Hetian the previous year before he could change his mind. Game on. Every year, Suzhou hosts an international carving competi- tion, where China's best face off against the world. | was hon- red to attend and speak at the April 2019 event. Donn Salt had ‘come up from New Zealand and as we wandered the exhibit halls, he remarked that he felt like a young schoolboy. Such is the quality of jade carving in China today that one look will have ‘you forgetting every tired Guanyin statue you've ever seen, International Colored Gemstone Association of China’s mutton-fat jade. Sadly, we found no nubile virgins, just one elderly jade picker. He had a single boulder that we purchased from him. (Photo: Richard Hughes) In September 2019, Adam invited me to visit one of China's most famous jade deposits in Liaoning Province in the north- east. There we visited the studio of Master Tangshuai, who cre- ates organic flowing carvings in serpentine. Retuming to Shang- hai, we leamed that Mester Wu had finished the carving of my boulder, and so once again visited his compound. He brought outa small custom-made box and presented it to me. Issue 471 Intolor 63_Jade Focus Master Tang Shual at his Tang Shuai Xiuyu Art Museum in Xiuyan, China, with one of his jellyfish-like works. His carvings in serpentine and nephrite jade are ‘some of the mast creative in China today. (Photo: Richard Hughes) Jade pickers in the Karakash river near Hetion (.k.c. Khotan) in western China's Xinjiang Province. Jade is said to be mas- culine and thus would be attracted to fe males (preferably naked virgins). Autumn moonlit nights were thought to be the hest time to find jade, as it was believed that the jade would reflect the moonlight. From the Tien Kung Kai Wu (KJ by Sung Ying-hsing, a 1637 AD Chinese pedia. Noted Sinologist Joseph Needham called this book the Chinese equivalent of Agricola’s De Re Metallica. Left to right: Jason Kao, Wimon Manorotkul, Richard Hughes, Wu Desheng,and “Adarn” Zhou Zhengyu in Wu Desheng’s Shanghai ‘compound. (Photo: E.Bilie Hughes) “Imperial” Jade ody the ter “impel joe" isgeneraly applied tothe nest qultes of eeen Jade ade fm Myanmar. Buteadesmaybe suprised ton tha the rate was apparent inventednty the ines, btn the Wat The it now instance ofthe erm imperial je” na European language canbe fand inthe noted French czamicexper,Aet Jacquemats dest ofthe jade collection of theDuke de Mom, published in 168 Above all, the two rare species are the orange jade, of which we can easly count the few examples gathered in Europe, and the imperial jade, invaluable gem, worthy of competing with certain premium emeralds. When itis green, and which, var Jed in green and white, produces an effect superior to thatof the richest agates, Almost unknown before our expedition [the Brench British sacking of the Summer Palace in 1860] from China, this stone tas only arrived in small samples since. Albert Jacquemart “Collection dobjets dart de Mle Duc de Momy” Gazette des Beau Arts, 1864 Fram thephrasng Jcquemart ust (theimpetal ja), itsuggess the term was not rnecessatly coined byhim, but pethaps ready in se. Mark Chou ictionry ofSadeomerclature, 198) hasamuch ater definition of Imperial ade: In strict meaning, it means: The choicest jade to be deserved to bbe collected by the Emperor This phirase has been undoubted: ly originated from [the] western world Istsense [fappied and usually to jadete,t must be tran cent and transparent with the finest emerald green color and is never found in Iarge masses... Among the Chinese tis Bo Lic. 2nd sense, applied, but rately to nephrite stands forthe inet mation fat jade cally the Chinese Goo Yu, Ning Zhi Yu, Yang Zhi Bat Ya, and Zhi Yu. tis eso nown wih [the] western name of Imperial White ade Touched by Jade Jade is the most sumptuous jewel against a woman's flesh. ~ Peatl Buck My joumey with jade had taken me around the world, to five coniinents and dozens of counties over four decades. | pon- dered all | had seen chasing this magical stone. Yes, there were some disappointments. | hadn't found the moonit virgins in the river. But | had visited so many places, had so many great ad- ventures, made so many new friends. ‘As | opened the box that Master Wu had presented me, | touched something smooth, creamy, almost ie a woman's skin. Bringing Wu's creation into the light, for the frst te, | truly un- derstood what jade means to the Chinese. in that box lay my mystical virgin from the river. I was holding heaven in the palm of my hand. Acknowledgments ‘The author would lke to thank the following people for spend- ing the time to introduce him to jade: Adam Zhou Zhengyu and Jason C.H. Kao of Shanghai's Tongji University, Master Wu Desheng, Lin Tze-Chuan. Thanks to the world’s Master Carvers {or lating us into their hearts and studios, including Cullei, Donn Salt, Fan Junmin, Georg Schmetholz, Liu Zhongrong, Ma Hong Wei, Pang Ran, Qiu Qijin, Ru Yuefeng, Tang Shuai, Wang De- hai, Wu Desheng, Yang Guang, Yang Xi, Yu Ting and Zhai Yiwoi. Thanks also to Leong, Vivian Deng, Lancie Dong, Zhao ‘Wenbi & Jin Jiyang, Cooper Ke, Sun Yunwu, Ms. Lina, Ms. Li and Mr. Tang (Zhong Wei Co.) for sponsoring some of our travels International Colored Gemstone Association InColor |(\ Bring on the nubiles: Wu Desheng, one of China's top master carvers, created this exquisite carving from the piece of jade the author purchased in Hetian in 2017. (Photo: Wimon Manorotkul) About the Author Richard W. Hughes is one of the world’s foremost experts on ruby and sapphire. The author of many books and over 170 art les, he has received numerous industry awards. 2017 saw the publication of Richard and his wife and daughter's Ruby & Sap- phre: A Gemologist's Guide, the culmination of four decades of work in geology. Richard founded Bangkok's Lotus Gemology in 2013 with his wife, Wimon Manorotkul, and his daughter, E. Bille Hughes. References and Further Reading Chou, M. (1987) Dictionary of Jade Nomenclature. Hong Kono, privately published, 150 pp. Goette, J. (n.d. ca. 1996-7) Jade Lore. New York, Reynal and Hitchcock, 321 pp.; [1976 edition by Ars Ceramica with an intro- duction by Wiliam C. Hu}. ‘Gump, R. (1962) Jade: Stone of Heaven. Garden Cily, NY, Double: cay 8 Co, 260 pp. Jacquemart,A. (1863-64) Collection dobjets dart de M. le Duc de Morny. Gazette des Beaux-Arts, Vol. 15, 1 November. pp. 393- 419; Vol. 16, 1 January, pp. 28-60. Laufer, 8. (1912) Jade: A Study in Chinese Archeeology and Reli- tion. Chicago, Field Museum of Natural History, Publication 154, ‘Anthropological Series, Vol. X, 2nd ed. reprinted by Westwood Press, 1946; Dover, 1974, 370 pp. Sat, D. (1982) Stone, Bone and Jade: 24 New Zealand Artists. Auck- land, David Beteman, 95 pp ‘Sung, Ying-heing (1966) Tien-Kung K’Ai-Wu: Chinese Technology in the Seventeenth Century. trans. by Sun, E.Z. and Sun, S-C. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 372 pp. m= Issue 471 Intolor 65