The origin of Jade dates back thousands of years, it comes from a mountain range in the northeast of Guatemala discovered more than 3,000 years ago. There are few places where it can be formed.
It is a mineral in the form of stone, whose scientific name is jadeite. Its great value and demand allowed the establishment of a long trade route, whose center was in what is now Guaytan in Guatemala, several ruins and some workshops, favor the location of what is now called the capital of Jade.
The most recent investigations indicate that Jade was used in 1,500 BC on the Pacific Coast of Chiapas, Mexico. However, with the Mayans, the largest and most advanced civilization on the continent, came the predominance of green jade, which was revered as the stone of eternity or the stone of heaven. Jade, according to ethnic cultures, had magical properties and they even said that it had the power to help the dead to reach the afterlife.
Since the The origin of Jade, the jade quarries have been looking for the jadeite nuclei with the best characteristics. These quarries, which were used by the Mayans in ancient times, were hidden during colonial times and were rediscovered in the 1950s. After being extracted from the quarry, a first examination allows the cores to be classified according to their chemical composition, purity , hardness and density. Then they are subjected to the first cuts by means of a diamond-hardened steel saw, but the Mayans did not have the technology of steel and by modern experiments, it is deduced that to make the cut they used abrasives made with mixed jade and quartz powder. with animal fat that they rubbed with a thin piece of wood. They also used vegetable rope fiber to apply the abrasive in the cutting technique.
Currently it is one of the most important jade mines in the world, since the unique colors of the region such as lilac, orange, silver and light blue have been found in them.
This metamorphic mineral is called this way, because it has undergone certain transformations due to the change in the conditions of the environment where it is found, it could be due to pressure and temperature, which makes the minerals appear in areas where there are transcurrent type faults in Guatemala.
Jade is harder than steel and is recognized by its color, which can be polished to a high shine, the most important and rare color being an emerald green known as imperial jade. It can be recognized by three basic characteristics: uniformity and intensity of color and translucency, which makes it of better quality.
The origin of Jade, through its trade, made possible the flourishing of great kingdoms. Today a meticulous process follows, specialists select each plate and it is checked to verify that it is free of impurities such as quartz, mica or crystals, nor should they have cracks, in order to obtain a piece of better quality and greater value.