Jade or not?!

mariusgmioc · 19th November 2016, 10:35 AM

Hello,

Is this jade?

Regards,

Marius

mariusgmioc · 19th November 2016, 10:37 AM

Well, if you think it is... you are wrong.

It is in fact Onyx. It comes from central Anatolia in Turkey wher it is found in abundance.

VANDOO · 19th November 2016, 06:11 PM

A TRICKY THING TO TELL FROM PICTURES ESPECIALLY THE WHITE HORSE BUT I GUESSED CORRECTLY. I AM ALSO A ROCKHOUND FOR EVEN LONGER THAN I AM A SWORDHOUND.

THERE IS QUITE A LOT OF ONYX FOUND IN NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA AND IT IS OFTEN CARVED INTO ANIMALS AND VASES THERE TOO. THE SOMEWHAT SIMILAR STONE ALABASTER IS ALSO FOUND AND CARVED HERE AS WELL AS IN EGYPT AND ELSEWHERE. THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL STONES BUT ARE NOT AS STRONG OR HEAVY AS JADE AND WILL CERTAINLY CHIP OR BREAK IF DROPPED. THEY ARE MUCH SOFTER AND EASILY WORKED WHERE JADE IS NOT FAST OR EASY TO WORK.

THEY STILL MAKE MEXICAN ONYX ANIMALS, BOOK ENDS , BOWLS, JEWELRY AND VASES IN MEXICO BUT HAVE STARTED MAKING LARGER FURNITURE AND ARCHITECTURAL USE OF ONYX AS WELL.
#1. SMALL ONYX ELEPHANT MEXICO
#2. ONYX LAMP
#3. ONYX COFFEE TABLE
#4. LARGE MEXICAN ORANGE ONYX SLAB
#5. ONYX LIGHTED BAR
#6. ONYX HALLWAY

A. G. Maisey · 20th November 2016, 11:58 PM

A quick, on the spot test to identify a jade possibility is to try to scratch the stone with a scriber.

The usual jade substitutes will scratch, jade will not.

It is a possibility test only, but it has saved me an error or two in the past.

Going back a few years I used to sell gemstones to jewellers and lapidiarists in Central Jawa and Bali. Apart from opals and sapphires, the most popular stone I sold to them was good quality chrysoprase. I sold this as rough, and it was marketed as "Hong Kong Jade".

The recent glass look-a-likes are really a trap, in a market setting, they are virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.

donsamadhi · 21st November 2016, 12:19 AM

No.. I dont think so.

different from this .. not onyx http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=22064

mariusgmioc · 21st November 2016, 03:21 PM

Not long ago a friend of mine travelled to China and while in Beijing she wanted to buy a genuine Jade statue. Luckily she has a very knowledgeable Chinese friend and also did a lot of research on jade. However, after several days of looking through both high end art shops and second hand markets, the only place where she could get with certainty genuine jade was at the Geological Museum of China. And it didn't come cheap, but she got a lovely nephrite statue of a cat.

So genuine jade (nephrite or jadeite) is quite hard to find and quite expensive.

Almost all Indian "Mughal" daggers with "jade" hilts we see frequently on sale, are not jade but other similarly looking stones or even glass.

19th November 2016, 10:35 AM	#1
mariusgmioc Member Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Austria Posts: 1,903	Jade or not?! Hello, Is this jade? Regards, Marius Attached Images

19th November 2016, 10:37 AM	#2
mariusgmioc Member Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Austria Posts: 1,903	Well, if you think it is... you are wrong. It is in fact Onyx. It comes from central Anatolia in Turkey wher it is found in abundance. Attached Images

19th November 2016, 06:11 PM	#3
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	A TRICKY THING TO TELL FROM PICTURES ESPECIALLY THE WHITE HORSE BUT I GUESSED CORRECTLY. I AM ALSO A ROCKHOUND FOR EVEN LONGER THAN I AM A SWORDHOUND. THERE IS QUITE A LOT OF ONYX FOUND IN NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA AND IT IS OFTEN CARVED INTO ANIMALS AND VASES THERE TOO. THE SOMEWHAT SIMILAR STONE ALABASTER IS ALSO FOUND AND CARVED HERE AS WELL AS IN EGYPT AND ELSEWHERE. THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL STONES BUT ARE NOT AS STRONG OR HEAVY AS JADE AND WILL CERTAINLY CHIP OR BREAK IF DROPPED. THEY ARE MUCH SOFTER AND EASILY WORKED WHERE JADE IS NOT FAST OR EASY TO WORK. THEY STILL MAKE MEXICAN ONYX ANIMALS, BOOK ENDS , BOWLS, JEWELRY AND VASES IN MEXICO BUT HAVE STARTED MAKING LARGER FURNITURE AND ARCHITECTURAL USE OF ONYX AS WELL. #1. SMALL ONYX ELEPHANT MEXICO #2. ONYX LAMP #3. ONYX COFFEE TABLE #4. LARGE MEXICAN ORANGE ONYX SLAB #5. ONYX LIGHTED BAR #6. ONYX HALLWAY Attached Images Last edited by VANDOO; 19th November 2016 at 07:19 PM.

20th November 2016, 11:58 PM	#4
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,893	A quick, on the spot test to identify a jade possibility is to try to scratch the stone with a scriber. The usual jade substitutes will scratch, jade will not. It is a possibility test only, but it has saved me an error or two in the past. Going back a few years I used to sell gemstones to jewellers and lapidiarists in Central Jawa and Bali. Apart from opals and sapphires, the most popular stone I sold to them was good quality chrysoprase. I sold this as rough, and it was marketed as "Hong Kong Jade". The recent glass look-a-likes are really a trap, in a market setting, they are virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.

21st November 2016, 12:19 AM	#5
donsamadhi Member Join Date: Oct 2016 Posts: 24	No.. I dont think so. different from this .. not onyx http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=22064

21st November 2016, 03:21 PM	#6
mariusgmioc Member Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Austria Posts: 1,903	Not long ago a friend of mine travelled to China and while in Beijing she wanted to buy a genuine Jade statue. Luckily she has a very knowledgeable Chinese friend and also did a lot of research on jade. However, after several days of looking through both high end art shops and second hand markets, the only place where she could get with certainty genuine jade was at the Geological Museum of China. And it didn't come cheap, but she got a lovely nephrite statue of a cat. So genuine jade (nephrite or jadeite) is quite hard to find and quite expensive. Almost all Indian "Mughal" daggers with "jade" hilts we see frequently on sale, are not jade but other similarly looking stones or even glass.