What is my jade worth? The value of Jade and appraisal

A long time jade-loving friend and customer sent me a link to a very good article about how the value of jadeite is determined, and the traditional Asian appraisal process.

Read Appraising Imperial Jadeite

You can get gemology testing from GIA gemologist, the price is about $100.  They test the jade to determine if it is jadeite, or something else, and if it is natural color.  But that doesn't give you the value if you intend to insure it.  The appraisal process is much more complex.

You might wonder why some jade bangle bracelets on our web sites are in the $300 range and some are $30,000.   The articles gets into how it's appraised for its true value.

Jade bangle bracelets that are in the old mine lao pit collections on our web sites have been mined either before the year 2000 or very early 2000's.   Political problems were happening in Burma and that brought about big changes in the availability and quality of jadeite.  And that's when the price really started increasing.

Now it's rare to find jade that has real, natural imperial green veins, and the article describes the Yin and Yang, Chuan vs Qi, translucency.  This is all related to Dao, Daoism, the essence of Chinese medicine, yin and yang theory.  To simplify Dao, it's being in harmony with nature.  And that's how I learned about jade from the jade experts in southern China who have been in the jade business for generations.  You see this type of description in the jade bangles, it comes for the energies and Dao of the jade. 

It's a complex concept to grasp, but that's the reality of appraisal.  I get help from my Chinese jade experts, who helped me shop and buy the best kind of jade when I was in China.  They advise me about pricing the jadeite bangle bracelets, and then get irritated with me that I list them for much lower than the prices they recommend.   I want these jade bangle bracelets to be on a jade lover's wrist, not in boxes I'm hoarding in a safe.  There are still many of these jade bangle bracelets, and pendants, I purchased 10-15 years ago,  and as I am working towards "retiring", I'm adding some very frequently so you can get a jadeite piece that not only is fabulous to wear, but has value that will increase and is an investment.

Precious and rare translucent old mine lao pit jadeite bangle bracelet JHBB276

How fun is that!