A precise use of the name

Gemologists use jade as a broad name for jadeite and nephrite; GIA also notes limited cases involving green omphacite. Jadeite belongs to the pyroxene group. In finished objects its tiny interlocking crystals help explain the material’s celebrated toughness. Hardness and toughness are not the same: a surface may scratch even when the object strongly resists fracture.

Emerald-green jadeite pendant from Qing-dynasty China, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Open Access object image, The Metropolitan Museum of Art; public domain.

Color is only the beginning

Jadeite occurs in green, lavender, white, yellow, reddish orange, brown, gray and black. Color may gather in veins, clouds or patches rather than forming a uniform field. Transparency ranges from opaque to semitransparent, and texture reflects grain size and the way crystals meet. Those qualities should be observed together, not reduced to one label.

Maya jadeite pendant with seated lord, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Open Access object image, The Metropolitan Museum of Art; public domain.

What photographs cannot establish

A photograph records one lighting setup, exposure and screen profile. It cannot establish mineral identity or treatment history. Careful viewing can describe hue, distribution, luster and visible features; laboratory testing is the proper route when identity or treatment disclosure matters.

Carved Maya jadeite head pendant, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Open Access object image, The Metropolitan Museum of Art; public domain.

Research basis

Independently written from public information supplied by GIA, Smithsonian and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. GIA · Smithsonian · The Met