"Jade"

True Jade is Jadeite. Other 'Jade' stones are Nephrite and Chrysoprase.
Similar but different quarts type material.

Jadeite
NaAlSi2O6
sodium aluminium silicate
Chrysoprase
SiO2 (Silicon Dioxide)
nickel silicate
 Nephrite
Ca2(MgFe)5(Si4O11)2
calcium magnesium, iron silicate.

Jadeite occurs naturally in Burma and Central America. Nephrite, better known in Australia as New Zealand Greenstone, occurs throughout the world including China. Chrysoprase also occurs throughout the world with particularly high quality deposits found in Marlborough, Queensland.

China has the worlds biggest jade market. All Chinese Jade is Nephrite as there are no naturally occurring Jadeite deposits in China. Basically the world accepts the interchange ability of Jadeite, Nephrite and Chrysoprase as being 'Jade'.

Marlborough Chrysoprase : "Australian Imperial Jade"

Marlborough Chrysoprase is sought because of it's high quality - the main mining area controlled by Hong Kong Chinese interests. For two decades, Chrysoprase has been shipped to Asia for cutting and marketed as Jade. Rough material was not made available to the general public in Australia.

Chrysoprase occurs in seams where chalcedony has been modified by nickel rich solutions. These seams generally vary from an inch to six inches in thickness.

Chrysoprase Boulders

Every now and then Mother Nature does something that is outside the normal. In this case - a small area on a mining lease at Marlborough contains a pocket of large chrysoprase boulders. These boulders vary in size up to 16 tonnes, of varying colour, from pale green/white to dark green. The main colour is a bright, translucent, peppermint green.

The outside of these boulders is covered with an oxidised skin, 1 to 5 cm thick, hiding the true nature of the underlying material.

The larger boulders will not be cut up but will be sold as major carving pieces so the they will remain as a testament to the beauty and unusual creations of nature.

A unique and marvellous Queensland Gemstone

Recovery Slideshow


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Chrysoprase lore & history

   
The identifying properties of gem quality chrysoprase are:

Colour: pale green, yellowish green, apple green, deep green
Diaphaneity: translucent to opaque
Lustre: vitreous to resinous
Hardness (Mohs scale): 6–7
Specific gravity: 2.58–2.64
Refractive index: 1.53-1.54
Birefringence: form birefringence 0.004
Chelsea filter reaction: green
Ultra-violet fluorescence: none

 

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