Learn about the various types of jade, their unique qualities, and where to find them in this comprehensive guide.

Jade is said to bless whatever it touches, serving mankind across the globe for nearly 6,000 years. For primitive peoples in the British Isles, its toughness, and ability to polish and sharpen made it a favored stone for axe heads, knives and weapons.

“Jade” is a generic term for nephrite, jadeite, and under certain conditions green omphacite. In China, a pierced jade disk is a symbol of heaven. Jade has its cultural roots in the smoke-dimmed caves and huts that sheltered prehistoric humans.

Jade, either of two tough, compact, typically green gemstones that take a high polish. Both minerals have been carved into jewelry, ornaments, small sculptures, and utilitarian objects from earliest recorded times. The more highly prized of the two jadestones is jadeite; the other is nephrite.

Jade itself has a nurturing heart within its energetic makeup that seeks to heal, replenish, and support. Its energies pulse steadily and abundantly throughout the body from the heart, providing physical, emotional, and spiritual healing.

Are All Jades the Same? Originally, all jade objects were thought to be made from the same material. However, in 1863 a Frenchman, Alexis Damour, discovered that the material known as "jade" could be divided into two different minerals: jadeite and nephrite.

Few objects in human history have carried as much weight — cultural, spiritual, and symbolic — as Chinese jade. For over 7,000 years, this luminous stone has been woven into the fabric of Chinese civilization, from Neolithic burial rituals to the imperial courts of the Qing Dynasty. If you’ve ever wondered what makes jade so central to Chinese culture, why ancient emperors valued it ...