Jade is a semiprecious stone with a hardness stunning bark. It comes in different colors, its consistency is changing, but always towards greater strength. Today, thanks to technological advances, jade’s carving is not a tedious task; but this was no the case of the Mesoamerican Indians. Although the virtues of this stone were admired by the various tribes of this time, the work was not an easy activity to perform; great strength and persistence to achieve results in the jade were necessary.
The stories of this stone speak about the existence of a knife called “Kuen Wu”; this was used to carve jade, because its hardness was greater than that of the stone. This was because this tool was composed of diamonds. The diamond composition is tremendously hard, in fact, at present, is still used to cut through hard surfaces. It was in the Bronze Age, when perfection was achieved in this work; Chinese were the ones who discovered the stones to sculpt on this crystal.
The mineral grains with seven degrees of hardness are the only suitable to treat jade; the “laess” is a yellow quartz with seven degrees of hardness; the “hematite” a red stone, has eight degrees; the “corundum” has nine degrees of strength and is black; and finally, diamond, whose minerals grains are ten degree of consistency.
As the strongest materials that jade were reduced, they took advantage of the steel properties. The “Hsüan ch’e” was a simple machine, steel, designed to polish jade; granites accompanying this action, known as “Chie yu sha”. ”
Hsuan ch’e ” is one of the important tools for sculpting jade, this machine is used for the same purpose drill carpenter; that is to say, is a belt tied to the front and back of the handle, which is pulling it strongly until the pointed end pierces the jade. On the other hand, the “Chie yu sha” is intended to provide a glossy appearance to jade.
To polish this stone, the first thing to do is divide their parts, select the segment that we use; then remove the unnecessary outside, because it is not included in the design we have done; at the end, we have to order the product according to the image you wish to obtain; the next move is the general cut, proceed patiently and gently; at the end, we carve in a specific way, shaping the jade; to finally polish it until get the shine we want.
The process to make Jade looks like we have in jewelry stores or craft sales, leads a great work, which contributes to its high commercial value; however, this gem is the living symbol of beauty, without including their precious powers within. Its journey makes it a splendid stone.
ALFA