Was jade highly valued in China?

Gold may be the most coveted of metals, and it's even more precious these days, with concerns about the strength of the global financial system pushing the world's de facto reserve currency up to about US$1000 an ounce. read more

Yes, Jade has a four thousand year history of being treasured by Chinese people. Up until about a century ago, the Jade that was most highly prized was the domestically produced Hetian White Nephrite. read more

From the Han period (206 B.C.E. - 220 C.E.) jade was obtained from the oasis region of Khotan on the Silk Route. The oasis lies about 5000 miles from the areas where jade was first worked in the Hongshan (in Inner Mongolia) and the Liangzhu cultures (near Shanghai) about 3000 years before. read more

Good Jade is highly valued in China and the rest of the world. A good strand of 7 or 8 mm beads well-matched and of good color costs millions. There is no type of agate that I am aware of that is of similar standing. There are two stones commonly refered to as Jade: Nephrite and Jadite. read more