Ad
related to: jade mineral information
Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Main jade producing countries. Jade is an umbrella term for two different types of decorative rocks used for jewelry or ornaments.Jade is often referred to by either of two different silicate mineral names: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group of minerals), or jadeite (a silicate of sodium and aluminum in the pyroxene group of minerals). [1]
Jadeite is the principal mineral making up the most valuable form of jade, a precious stone particularly prized in China. Most gem-quality jadeite jade comes from northern Myanmar. Jade tools and implements have been found at Stone Age sites, showing that the mineral has been prized by humans since before the beginning of written history.
It is one of two different mineral species called jade. The other mineral species known as jade is jadeite, which is a variety of pyroxene. While nephrite jade possesses mainly grays and greens (and occasionally yellows, browns, black or whites), jadeite jade, which is rarer, can also contain blacks, reds, pinks and violets.
In the early days of jade carving, quartz, a mineral with a high hardness level, was the object of choice. [18] At the beginning of the Song dynasty , a time of prolific technology growth, "red sand", with a hardness level of 7.5 became the dominant tool of the industry. [ 20 ]
Next to emery, jade was the hardest mineral known to ancient Mesoamerica. [11] In the absence of metal tools, ancient craftsmen used tools themselves made of jade, leather strops , string saws to cut and carve jade, and reeds or other hard materials to drill holes.
In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, ... Jadeite and nephrite (mineral forms of jade are examples of minerals with this property). Minerals ...
Get AOL Mail for FREE! Manage your email like never before with travel, photo & document views. Personalize your inbox with themes & tabs. You've Got Mail!
Nephrite, one of the two minerals known as the gemstone jade, is a green crystalline variety of tremolite. The fibrous form of tremolite is one of the six recognised types of asbestos. This material is toxic, and inhaling the fibers can lead to asbestosis, lung cancer and both pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma.