Are the floating flowers on jade a flaw?

A few days ago, a jade friend found Cuicui and wanted to ask her about "floating flower jadeite". One point mentioned by the friend left a deep impression on Cuicui. This jade friend asked Cuicui: "Can the 'flowers' in floating flower jade be considered a flaw in jade?" This question reminded Cuicui of the same question she had when she first came into contact with floating flower jade.

Floating flower jadeite can be regarded as a variety of jadeite in the market. The "floating flowers" can embellish and set off the jadeite, making it more colorful, but at the same time, the quality of the "flowers" of floating flower jadeite also affects the quality of jadeite. Can the "flowers" in floating flower jadeite be regarded as flaws of jadeite? In this issue of Jade Class, Cuicui will answer your questions and talk about what the "flower" of jade is.

What is the “flower” of jade?

As mentioned earlier, when Cuicui first came into contact with floating flower jadeite, she also had questions about this type of jadeite, such as "Can the 'flowers' of floating flower jadeite be considered a jadeite defect?" In order to get the answer, Cuicui consulted several experts and scholars, and the answer she got was: the "flowers" of jadeite are not jadeite defects, but the color of jadeite.

Through further explanation by experts and scholars, Cuicui finally understood that among the colors of jade, only the beautiful green can be called the "color" of jade, while other colors are generally not called "colors" but can only be called "flowers." This brings up the concept of "flower" in jade.

The "flowers" of jadeite refer to some scattered, flower- and grass-like colors distributed in the jade flesh. (This definition comes from the book "Image Jade Science" written by Mr. Ma Chongren) The colors of jade "flowers" can come in many varieties, such as green, blue-green, purple, black and other colors in jade can all be called "flowers". In the market, these jades are respectively called colored flower jade, blue flower (including black flower) jade, purple flower jade, etc.

It should be noted that the color that can be called "flower" can only be the natural color of jadeite. The secondary colors of jadeite such as reddish brown or brownish yellow cannot be called the "flower" of jadeite.

▲Tips:

① The “flower” of jadeite can be understood in a broad and narrow sense.

In a narrow sense, the "flowers" of jade only refer to "blue flowers", while the floating flowers of jade mentioned in the market now usually refer to the broad understanding of "flowers", that is, the scattered green or lighter green in jade can also be called "flowers", called "color flowers". The "flower blue jade" mentioned by Cuicui in previous articles can be called "color flowers"; the lighter or uneven jasper jade can also be called "jasper flower jade"; others, such as jade with black flowers, blue flowers, and blue-green flowers, can be collectively referred to as "floating blue flower jade."

② The primary and secondary colors of jadeite

The primary color of jade refers to the color produced by the primary minerals. It is the main color type of jade and the most important factor in making jade a gem (this definition comes from the book "Applied Jade Gemology" written by Yuan Xinqiang). The primary color of jade has many shades, including white, green, purple, black and so on. The secondary color of jade refers to the color formed when the constituent minerals of jade are decomposed by geological effects, and some oxides, colloids or clay minerals enter the cracks of jade. The main colors are brown-yellow, brown-red, gray-green, etc.

Three types of jade “flowers”

The colors and shapes of floating flower jadeite are diverse and the types are numerous and complex. According to experts and scholars, floating flower jadeite can be divided into three types according to the principle of simplifying and combining market conditions: colored flower jadeite, variegated flower jadeite, and blue flower jadeite.

1 color flower jade

From the above, we can see that the scattered green or lighter green in jade is called "flowers", or "color flowers". The flower green jadeite seen on the market can also be called "color flower jadeite". Since the color distribution of colored flower jadeite is relatively scattered, it is not suitable for making ring faces. Generally, it is mostly carvings, bracelets or ornaments. The market calls such material "flower card material" and the large pieces are called "color piles".

Colored Jade

2Purple Jade Flower

The raw stones of jasper jade are generally larger in size. Because of its lighter color, the market calls this kind of material "jasper flower material". Some materials contain some light green, which is called "spring color". Only a very small amount of the magnolia jade has rich colors and can be carved into ring faces. Most of the jade is generally made into carvings, ornaments, bracelets, etc.

Purple Jade

3 Blue Flower Jade

In jadeite, some blue, blue-green, and blue-black minerals are distributed in the base in scattered, spotted, vein-like, or network-like forms, just like flowers and plants. This is called the blue flower of jadeite (this definition comes from the book "Image Jadeology" written by Mr. Ma Chongren). The blue flowers of jadeite in the market do not refer to a single color. It covers a wide range of colors, including blue to blue-green, gray-green, gray-blue, and even black and black-blue tones. Blue flower jade has a relatively high yield among jades. Various bracelets with blue flowers can often be seen on the market and are deeply loved by jade lovers.

Experts and scholars reminded Cuicui that there is one point that requires special attention in blue flower jadeite: blue flower jadeite can not only enrich the color of jadeite, but also improve the quality of jadeite to a certain extent.

As to why the water head is better where there are blue flowers in jade, experts and scholars explained to Cuicui: This has to start with how the blue flowers in jade are formed. During the growth process of jade, it is subjected to dynamic metamorphism, and the mineral ions precipitated from minerals such as hornblende contained inside migrate, diffuse and form crystalline precipitation, which forms the "blue flowers" of jade. At the same time as the blue flowers are formed, this filling-type crystallization also makes the jade structure denser to a certain extent. Therefore, the quality and water head of the parts of the jade with blue flowers will be relatively better than other parts.

Blue Flower Jade

How to identify the quality of blue flower jadeite?

In the jade market, we often see jade jewelry with blue flowers. How to distinguish the quality of blue flower jade is probably a question that many jade lovers want to know. Cuicui also consulted experts and scholars in the industry about this issue, and they gave the following three suggestions: first, see the brightness of the blue flowers in the jade; second, see whether the shape of the blue flowers in the jade is beautiful and whether the density is moderate; third, see the overall quality and water head of the blue flower jade.

1. Look at the vividness of the color

Due to the influence of the factors that form it, the color of blue flower jade is generally deep and dark, mainly gray, with relatively fewer blue-green tones. The color of a good blue flower jadeite should be of moderate depth and appropriate intensity, but it should be noted that blue flower jadeite generally does not give people a particularly bright visual sense, so people should not be too picky about the color of blue flower jadeite.

2. Check whether the shape is good-looking and whether the density is moderate

Although the blue flowers on jade can enrich the color of jade, the size and number of the flowers must be moderate and not too many. If there are too many floating flowers in jade and they are too dense, it will reduce the beauty of the jade. Beautiful blue flowers should be like flowers and grass. Blue flowers appear in large patches, large clusters or wide strips, which will affect the value of jadeite to a certain extent.

3. Look at the overall quality and water head

In addition to looking at the color brightness, shape, and density of the blue flower jadeite, the overall quality and water head of the jadeite are also very important. Jadeite with good quality and water head can complement the blue flowers of the jadeite, making the blue flowers in the jadeite more lively and beautiful. Therefore, when choosing blue flower jadeite, you must make an overall judgment of the jadeite, and all aspects of factors are indispensable.

fruit

fcgc33