The herald., 1922-10-19
In a City of Eastern Turkestan.

prepared by the National Geographic So
ciety. Washington. d. c.
Once jade. luStruus, Semi-preCious
stone, was considered the key to the
supposed dispersal of peoples from
Asia. Jade ornaments were found in
Asia, Europe and America, and appar-
emily mines Of the stone existed only
In Asia. Jade seemed to prove. there
fore, that humanity had begun its con-
quest of the earth from the heart of
the old continent TO the East. In
latter years jade has been found in
veins or as bOulders in widely scat
tered places over the earth, and its
supposed value as a key TO early mi
gratiOns OF men has passed. But
romance still clings to this stone for
which the Chinese as a ration can
almost be said to have had a veritable
passion, and which, wherever it has
been found, has been highly valued
or even reverenced.
Characteristically jade is green, but
the most highly priced specimens in
China during some eras were pure
white or creamy white The choicest
pieces Of jade were sent to the court
OF the emperOrs. For thousands of
years the Chinese court workshops for
the carving and polishing of jade con-
stituted the most famous seat of the
industry.
Sage and artisan alike among the
Chinese were strangely infatuated
with this austere, wax-like stone. Its
Chinese name Yu, means ''the GEM
none other is worthy to share place
with it. 1t is described as the quint-
essence of Heaven and earth" and the
subtle matter Of the rainbow con-
creted and fixed under the form Of a
stone" Even Confuclus sang its
praises, saying that "in the eyes of
wise men it's polish and Its brilliancy
represent virtue and humanity, and its
perfect cOmpactness and extreme
hardness the safeguards of intelli-
. gence."
Quarried in Eastern Turkestan.
Though jade has been found In
greater or less quantities in many
L II,
not far from the geographical center
Of Asia, Is alike the greatest and per-
haps the earliest source of the stone.
Travellers describe the jade quarries
as situated on the south face of the
kuenlun mountains, in the main valley
of the upper part of the Karakash
river, south of the city of KhOtan.
They extend for a mile or more in
length, and in this space are the en-
frances of at least a hundred tunnels
which riddle the mountain side in
every direction, and in some cases
pierce through the mountain to the
further side. The mineral is found in
veins Of varying thickness, in width
from a few inches to ten feet, but SO
scanned and cracked as to make 1t
difficult to find a piece even q few
inches thick which is not badly fiawed
Until the middle of the last century
China maintained her authority over
eastern Turkestan, including Yarkand
and khotan. The people, however,
were Mohammedan, and Ia 1872 they
succeeded in throwing off the Chinese
yoke by general uprising, in which
all the officials were massacred. The
}ade workers. who were Chinese. prob
lbly fled from the quarries at this
time and shared the fate of their coun-
trymen. Their clothing, implements
ana remnants of food were left In
their haste, and were seen by Cayley
when he visited the Quarries in 1871.
work was resumed later, but too many
or the expert carvers and workmen
were killed during the rebellion for
the Industry to recover its former
preeminence.
Loose boulders Of jade are often car
ried down by the force of the current
In the F:rakash and tributary streams.
and they eventually become embedded
In the soft clay banks or are deposited
In the bed Of the river. This water
jade" is highly valued by the Chinese
carvers, as its rough journey is a Sc
we're test Of hidden flaws, which might
otherwise cause the block to fall to
pieces after much labor has already
been expended on it. 1t is obtained
either by digging the boulders out OK
the banks or by divers specially
trained for the work. An inspector
always accompanies these diving par
ties, whose duty it is to mark each
lump as it is brought up, estimate its
value, and finally ship the jade to
Picking. Such pieces bring three times
the price of quarried specimens of
similar size and color.
Other Sources Of Jade.
In many rivers of eastern Turkestan
Jade pebbles are found in abundance.
The word "kash," so often found in
the names of rivers and places in this
region, means "jade" in Toorkee, and