Evaluating jadeite (feicui)

[Crimson]

@Pomelo Thanks so much for the helpful information!

@Crimson Those sculptures are so beautiful. Is the Pixiu the last one? The first looks like a cute lion? The second a turtle?

That’s what I thought at first too!
The first one is a Pixiu; the second is the black tortoise and the third, a Kirin or Qilin (which was featured in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore).
A bit more info:

Divine Chinese creatures that deliver prosperity, good fortune and health

As the Year of the Dragon gets underway, the Post explains the five creatures in Chinese culture that are widely believed to be auspicious.

www.scmp.com

 

[Pomelo]

Another jadeite report from Jewel Land…
I am going to do a rainbow gems inspired post, inspired by @Autumn in New England and include some explanations which @MMtwo enjoys,

RED… these are super cute and a lovely red. Usually, the so-called reds are more orangey. These are the reddest I have seen, and the price is down to earth. They are in the shape of fish，Yu 鱼 which puns with another Chinese word Yu 余 . If you have the fish I means you 有余 you have abundance or have more than enough.


Source: https://www.jadestorysingapore.com/product-page/the-dancing-fish

Next, ORANGE. Most orange and yellow jadeite, comes from the rind of jade boulders. Yellow and orange jadeite may be heated, so it’s important to buy from a reputable supplier and retailer.
Another auspicious living thing for Chinese is the butterfly, which represents good fortune and beauty. Again, there are puns. The first word of Butterfly hudie蝴蝶, hu, similar to fu 福 (prosperity). You can hear the sounds in this link. https://www.amnh.org/explore/ology/zoology/the-butterfly-kingdom2/butterflies-in-culture

Here’s a pair of delicious orange jadeite earrings and in front of them, a pair of thick thick YELLOW circles whose shade and texture remind me of New Zealand Manuka honey. Don’t they look delicious? They are from Asiatique Fine Jewellery.

Jade Story has amazing pieces, I really like how some of them are set in a modern manner.

@Crimson I tried looking up neon jadeite but couldn’t really find anything on Chinese websites via the literal translation. Have you come across it before?

This pair on the Jade Story website was described as neon. I guess it’s very vibrant colour (yellow-green?) but average zhongshui?

 

[Crimson]

Jade Story has amazing pieces, I really like how some of them are set in a modern manner.

@Crimson I tried looking up neon jadeite but couldn’t really find anything on Chinese websites via the literal translation. Have you come across it before?

This pair on the Jade Story website was described as neon. I guess it’s very vibrant colour (yellow-green?) but average zhongshui?

Neon in Chinese - hmm I think the term is not so commonly used wrt jadeite. I have seen it being used to describe spinel.
I think Jadestory uses “neon” only to describe the colour and not necessarily the other properties of the stone. The earrings have a nice Art Deco reference but I find them a bit flat.

I have seen other Chinese expressions e.g., on Kathy Jade such as “起荧光“ or ”发光“ which I believe refer to glow, especially with colourless, glassy jadeite like the one below.

 

[Crimson]

New mineral found inside jadeite! This is so exciting. It is called Amaterasuite, after the Japanese Sun goddess Amaterasu
Pic from Mindat. The red arrows point at small patches of Amaterasuite.


This is the journal article documenting the find and properties of Amaterasuite.

Amaterasuite, Sr4Ti6Si4O23(OH)Cl, a new mineral from jadeitite, a representative stone of Japan

Access full-text academic articles: J-STAGE is an online platform for Japanese academic journals.

www.jstage.jst.go.jp

Daisuke NISHIO-HAMANE, Mariko NAGASHIMA, Yuki MORI, Masayuki OHNISHI, Norimasa SHIMOBAYASHI, Takashi MATSUMOTO, Mitsuo TANABE, Amaterasuite, Sr4Ti6Si4O23(OH)Cl, a new mineral from jadeitite, a representative stone of Japan, Journal of Mineralogical and Petrological Sciences, 2025, Volume 120, Issue 1, Released on J-STAGE August 07, 2025, Advance online publication July 18, 2025, Online ISSN 1349-3825, Print ISSN 1345-6296, https://doi.org/10.2465/jmps.250420, https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jmps/120/1/120_250420/_article/-char/en,
Abstract:
Amaterasuite is a new mineral found in jadeitite, a representative stone of Japan, and was thus named after Amaterasu Omikami, one of the most important goddesses in Japanese mythology, as a tribute to Japanese stone culture. The new mineral was found in the Osayama mountain area, Osa-osakabe, Niimi City, Okayama Prefecture, Japan. Amaterasuite appears as bundles consisting of needle- to plate-shaped crystals as large as 150 µm around rutile. The Mohs hardness is 6. Its tenacity is brittle, and its calculated density is 4.0 g·cm−3. Under plane-polarized light, the mineral is pleochroic, changing from blue to brown.

 

[higanbanya]

Good buy alert!
In case anyone is looking for a pendant to go with their ice jadeite
@Odyssey44 , @Pomelo @MMtwo ?
Looks glowy and the price is excellent!
I have put myself on Ban Island for two weeks

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So.. I have indeed wanted to get another ice jadeite and caved! Thanks for the recommendation!!

 

[Crimson]

So.. I have indeed wanted to get another ice jadeite and caved! Thanks for the recommendation!!

YAAAAYYYY!!!! So glad you bought it @higanbanya! Both you and the pea pod look so good together! Love the look of jadeite with your happy Saturday casual outfit!
The pea pod looks so glowing and full, too. Such a great buy. Is that your vibrant Milo ring in the photo?
Wriston must be happy, too

 

[higanbanya]

YAAAAYYYY!!!! So glad you bought it @higanbanya! Both you and the pea pod look so good together! Love the look of jadeite with your happy Saturday casual outfit!
The pea pod looks so glowing and full, too. Such a great buy. Is that your vibrant Milo ring in the photo?
Wriston must be happy, too

Hoho yes it is!! Thank youuu

Yesss he’s happy, was telling him about how y’all jadeite forumers are great enablers - love this community!

 

[Crimson]

Update for all jadeite lovers. There has been some concern that some Guatemalan jadeite is being passed off as Burmese and (over)charged accordingly.
So it is good news for buyers that gem labs are now able to determine the geographical origin of Fei Cui, whether from Myanmar or Guatemala. These include NGTC in China and Guild Gem Labs.
More good news: GIA can now do the same and state origin on their Fei Cui reports . No official press release yet but ther have been some announcements on social media.
[
See this video (go to the 40th minute)

Sources: see the post below.

 

[Pomelo]

Update for all jadeite lovers. There has been some concern that some Guatemalan jadeite is being passed off as Burmese and (over)charged accordingly.
So it is good news for buyers that gem labs are now able to determine the geographical origin of Fei Cui, whether from Myanmar or Guatemala. These include NGTC in China and Guild Gem Labs.
More good news: GIA can now do the same and state origin on their Fei Cui reports . No official press release yet but ther have been some announcements on social media.
[
See this video (go to the 40th minute)

Sources: see the post below.

This is such welcome news! I’ve recently found out that my Buddha is most likely Guatemalan material. It’s my fault - I didn’t ask the vendor for the origin and just assumed it was Burmese as it came with a cert! To be fair, the price is probably in line with Guatemalan rather than Burmese jadeite so I’m not too annoyed…

The tell-tale sign is that at an angle, it goes dark like the photos below. Apparently at this zhongshui level, the material should glow from all angles.

Here is my Buddha with the high quality Guatemalan cab I posted about earlier. The colour is great and to be fair it looked good from most angles to my eye, but I took it to a jadeite fair and a vendor said it was Guatemalan without my prompting. His comment was: it looks oily rather than crisp, but the cab itself glowed from all angles.




Guatemalan cab compared to emerald (the ring itself is vintage Cartier so I didn’t pick out the emerald itself, it’s the only emerald I have!)

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

@Pomelo do they sell Guatemalan jadeite bangles? Seems like it would be great for a super green one! I wonder how much it would be!

 

[Pomelo]

@Pomelo do they sell Guatemalan jadeite bangles? Seems like it would be great for a super green one! I wonder how much it would be!

I’ve not seen green Guatemalan bangles, i wonder if it’s because high quality green material has only been found in small boulders so far? Everything I’ve seen (which admittedly is not a lot) that’s green are small items.

A search on Rednote turned up these bangles with blue base and floating green flowers, but I don’t know the price! It also looks photoshopped as the skin tone is too white/pink and the red cord they use to attach the bangle to the paper is too light.

Guatemalan material is typically 1/4 to 1/2 the price of similar Burmese material.

 

[Crimson]

This is such welcome news! I’ve recently found out that my Buddha is most likely Guatemalan material. It’s my fault - I didn’t ask the vendor for the origin and just assumed it was Burmese as it came with a cert! To be fair, the price is probably in line with Guatemalan rather than Burmese jadeite so I’m not too annoyed…

The tell-tale sign is that at an angle, it goes dark like the photos below. Apparently at this zhongshui level, the material should glow from all angles.

Here is my Buddha with the high quality Guatemalan cab I posted about earlier. The colour is great and to be fair it looked good from most angles to my eye, but I took it to a jadeite fair and a vendor said it was Guatemalan without my prompting. His comment was: it looks oily rather than crisp, but the cab itself glowed from all angles.




Guatemalan cab compared to emerald (the ring itself is vintage Cartier so I didn’t pick out the emerald itself, it’s the only emerald I have!)

Don’t blame yourself, @Pomelo. We live and learn.
At least you got it for a good price and most important, it was to remind you of your grandfather.
Yes, from what I have seen online Guatemalan jadeite tends to go dark at certain angles or light conditions. It is usually cut quite thin. It is also possible to tell by studying the edges. But thank goodness now the labs can help us too.

I’ve not seen green Guatemalan bangles, i wonder if it’s because high quality green material has only been found in small boulders so far? Everything I’ve seen (which admittedly is not a lot) that’s green are small items.

A search on Rednote turned up these bangles with blue base and floating green flowers, but I don’t know the price! It also looks photoshopped as the skin tone is too white/pink and the red cord they use to attach the bangle to the paper is too light.

Guatemalan material is typically 1/4 to 1/2 the price of similar Burmese material.

Yes, I have not seen many Guatemalan jadeite bangles either. The ones I have seen are blue, and with blue jadeite it is easer to tell. Because of Guatemalan jadeite’ s higher content of iron and omphacite it generally looks darker.
This article has a misleading pic of Guatemalan jadeite. I notice is often presented with foil on the back. In this case it is even more crazy. Using a mirror really distorts perceptions of the stone.

https://www.gia.edu/gems-gemology/spring-2025-gemnews-green-jadeite-omphacite-guatemala

 

[DKT]

From Asiatique's IG page. Isn't it lovely? Wonder on which end of the 5 fig range it sits

 

[Crimson]

From Asiatique's IG page. Isn't it lovely? Wonder on which end of the 5 fig range it sits

Yes, lovely! Such a rich hue, evenly distributed colour and watery texture. A good size too. The domes also look high enough.. so I think the price wouldn’t be at the low end of 5 figures. I could ask him for the price but am afraid I will then be tempted!

 

[Crimson]

From Asiatique's IG page. Isn't it lovely? Wonder on which end of the 5 fig range it sits

I checked! The earlier pair became unavailable.
There is a new pair, brighter and more watery but smaller. personally, I prefer this second pair although the jadeite ovals are a bit smaller than the other pair. I have dark and thick hair, so earrings of a deep colour may not show up. Both pairs have the same price SGD 35,000.

 

[Pomelo]

I checked! The earlier pair became unavailable.
There is a new pair, brighter and more watery but smaller. personally, I prefer this second pair although the jadeite ovals are a bit smaller than the other pair. I have dark and thick hair, so earrings of a deep colour may not show up. Both pairs have the same price SGD 35,000.

Smaller pair is beautiful, such good glow!

 

[Crimson]

Argh, I made a typo. They are both 38,000, not 35,000.
I was thinking of another stone.
Trying my hardest to stay on Ban Island but all resolve may vanish in the coming weeks because of dinners/lunches with jewellery-loving friends.

 

[Pomelo]

Argh, I made a typo. They are both 38,000, not 35,000.
I was thinking of another stone.
Trying my hardest to stay on Ban Island but all resolve may vanish in the coming weeks because of dinners/lunches with jewellery-loving friends.

Yes, those friends are the worst

 

[Crimson]

Yes, those friends are the worst

I am the guilty one! I have “infected” my friends - female, male, younger, older, at work, outside of work, my bankers. clients, and so on.
Whole families have been “converted”. The network keeps growing. There is a new informal group of jewellery-loving professionals too
One of my fav jewellers calls me a walking advertisement.

 

[Crimson]

I owe you all a continuation of the jadeite rainbow.
Blue is one of the toughest colours to get right. Just a bit of greyi or oily green, and the value drops significantly. Most Burmese blue jadeite is lighter toned - see below. The first two bangles and the pendants are a desirable blue. The last bangle has some green mixed in and is probably not as expensive as the first I don’t have any Burmese blue jadeite so I’m using screenshots.




Guatemalan blue jadeite is darker hued - more kosmochlor and iron. It was traditionally called princess blue.
This is a good representation of their princess blue.

RealJade® Co. High Natural Guatemalan Blue Jadeite Jade Tiger Pendant

* DETAILS--- Genuine Guatemalan Jadeite Jade Tiger pendant. This pendant is made with very high quality genuine Guatemalan blue ice Jadeite jade, The jade texture is so transparent with blue color. The excellent carving looks very exquisite. It's a special gift for yourself or your love.*...

www.realjade.com

I’ve noticed that the Guatemala blue material is also not as fine grained as Burmese material.

 

[Crimson]

Jadeite Rainbow. I think we’ve already talked a lot about green here so I’m not sure if I should say anything more. Perhaps I could go on to purple next.

 

[Crimson]

Jadeite from Kazakhstan. When I first heard about this, I was very excited, until I saw the material. It is not really gem quality, at least not what has appeared in the market. Still, it’s supposedly the largest jadeite deposit

 

[Odyssey44]

I am the guilty one! I have “infected” my friends - female, male, younger, older, at work, outside of work, my bankers. clients, and so on.
Whole families have been “converted”. The network keeps growing. There is a new informal group of jewellery-loving professionals too
One of my fav jewellers calls me a walking advertisement.

Dear Crimson, you have done the same here on PS! I have been infected by you! Now if only I could go shopping with you.

 

[Odyssey44]

Jadeite Rainbow. I think we’ve already talked a lot about green here so I’m not sure if I should say anything more. Perhaps I could go on to purple next.

Yes please! I am hunting a big bubble of a purple ring. I love the shape of this one, but perhaps it is not lavender enough? There is a no returns policy, which perhaps should be an automatic pass.

https://imgur.com/a/hVK03EH

 

[Crimson]

Dear Crimson, you have done the same here on PS! I have been infected by you! Now if only I could go shopping with you.

Haha, that would be so much fun, @Odyssey44.
I must say it is very seldom that anyone who goes shopping with me escapes unscathed. I have had friends who said, “Oh, I am just tagging along to have a look” and then leave the store with three items.
Other friends go straight from the airport to the jewellery store because they are starved after a few weeks of intense business trips.
The most amusing — and this happens very now and then — is a text that reads, “It has been a very stressful period. Going to (name of Jewellery store) now” followed by a photo of a lovely, soothing gem about an hour later.
There, I have confessed everything

 

[Crimson]

Yes please! I am hunting a big bubble of a purple ring. I love the shape of this one, but perhaps it is not lavender enough? There is a no returns policy, which perhaps should be an automatic pass.

https://imgur.com/a/hVK03EH

I love the idea of a big bubble, and this one really does look like a bubble.
However. I’m not comfortable with the No Return policy.
My instinct is that this ring is going to look even more desaturated in daylight
Under the indoor lights, it already looks quite pale
The photo supposedly shows some leaves on the left side, but I am not sure it is an outdoor shot.
I’ve also seen videos which show how vendors typically photograph or take videos of lavender jadeite. They use a mix of red and blue lights, which creates magenta and makes the jadeite look more intensely coloured. This can be done either indoors or outdoors
Lavender Jadeite often looks better in photos than in real life. So I suspect that when you see this ring in person, it will be even paler and may not even be counted as lavender.
So I think it’s better to pass on this one, especially since returns are not accepted. Enjoy the thrill of the hunt!

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Haha, that would be so much fun, @Odyssey44.
I must say it is very seldom that anyone who goes shopping with me escapes unscathed. I have had friends who said, “Oh, I am just tagging along to have a look” and then leave the store with three items.
Other friends go straight from the airport to the jewellery store because they are starved after a few weeks of intense business trips.
The most amusing — and this happens very now and then — is a text that reads, “It has been a very stressful period. Going to (name of Jewellery store) now” followed by a photo of a lovely, soothing gem about an hour later.
There, I have confessed everything

Ok I feel less bad about the $500 that I’ve dropped on Labubu and Labubu clothing now.

 

[Crimson]

Lavender jadeite is hard to photograph accurately.
Here, I’ll be using photos of pieces that I have seen in person, and that I can say are accurately photographed. I shall also try to point to examples of the shades shown in the jadeite rainbow poster.


To start, this is a light pinkish purple. This is how the pinkish purple jadeites usually look. This seems to be a cross between
粉紫色 (pinkish purple) and
淡紫色 (light purple)

Lavender Jade Ruby Diamond Ring - On Cheong Jewellery

On Cheong Jewellery offers a wide suite of jewellery ranging from bracelets to earrings, jadeite to sapphires! Each piece is intricately crafted only by experienced craftsmen to ensure your pieces will last the test of time and cherished for generations.

oncheong.com

Anything more pink than the above might be described as red-purple 红紫色or pinkish -purple. 粉紫色
However, they most likely have a painted foil back — a trusted jadeite dealer from China told me so. I showed her a photo like the one below and she immediately replied, “Don’t buy! Probably painted backing” . This kind of dark pink or reddish purple does exist but is extremely rare. So it is better to be skeptical and cautious.



The more blue-ish or violet kind of jadeite has a following.
I would say my purple spinning ring is bluish purple. 蓝紫色 it also colour-shifts a bit

This is a lavender 紫罗兰 from Classic Jade. This photo was taken outdoors. I can recognise the surroundings. Classic Jade has highly accurate photos.I appreciate them for that.


Finally the so-called imperial purple tends to be quite saturated. I noticed that even when shops have them, they are not the ones that are displayed. They are also not as expensive as the non– imperial purple pieces because they tend to have coarser grains.
Fine-grained intense lavender jadeite is hard to find. Dealers suggest buying for colour, rather than for texture, when it comes to lavender Jadeite. A fine-grained, icy-glutinous texture gives you colour stability. More translucent stones run the risk of dying in the light.

 

[Crimson]

Ok I feel less bad about the $500 that I’ve dropped on Labubu and Labubu clothing now.

I bet you are the only person who wears those Labubu clothes with giant glam rings!

 

[nyapple]

Hello! Chiming in out of surprise and curiosity. I really thought the last bangle is a guatemalan. My first bangle is that teal blue green color and many people insist it is a guatemalan. Seller would not disclose origin and I bought with 0 experience. It had very, very fine texture and translucency.

I owe you all a continuation of the jadeite rainbow.
Blue is one of the toughest colours to get right. Just a bit of greyi or oily green, and the value drops significantly. Most Burmese blue jadeite is lighter toned - see below. The first two bangles and the pendants are a desirable blue. The last bangle has some green mixed in and is probably not as expensive as the first I don’t have any Burmese blue jadeite so I’m using screenshots.




Guatemalan blue jadeite is darker hued - more kosmochlor and iron. It was traditionally called princess blue.
This is a good representation of their princess blue.

RealJade® Co. High Natural Guatemalan Blue Jadeite Jade Tiger Pendant

* DETAILS--- Genuine Guatemalan Jadeite Jade Tiger pendant. This pendant is made with very high quality genuine Guatemalan blue ice Jadeite jade, The jade texture is so transparent with blue color. The excellent carving looks very exquisite. It's a special gift for yourself or your love.*...

www.realjade.com

I’ve noticed that the Guatemala blue material is also not as fine grained as Burmese material.