Photo Credit: BaikalGems
Siberian Nephrite Jade Slab
Asking Price: $180 (price as of 2018; item no longer available)
Pros:
-$180 will buy you this alternative investment extraordinaire – a slab of polished Siberian nephrite jade straight from Asiatic Russia.
-This impressive block of polished Siberian nephrite jade measures 16.0 cm (6.3 inches) by 15.3 cm (6.0 inches) by 2.2 cm (0.9 inches) thick. It weighs a substantial 1,650 grams (3.64 pounds).
-While the Chinese have revered and treasured jade for millennia, Western cultures are only now coming to appreciate this unique gemstone. This is one of the reasons I think rough jade is a good investment – as the word spreads of its amazing physical and optical qualities, long-term global demand is sure to grow.
-The bright, apple-green color of this nephrite jade is characteristic of Siberian material, which is very popular in the Chinese market. According to the seller, this specimen was mined in the Sayan Mountains in Asiatic Russia, near Lake Baikal.
-Before 2000, Siberian nephrite jade only cost a few dollars a kilo. It was so cheap that it wasn’t even worth extracting from the rugged Russian wilderness. However, strong and persistent Chinese demand has propelled the price of top tier material to well over $1,000 a kilo.
-The small black inclusions scattered throughout the green stone are iron-rich chromite (FeCr2O4), a classic hallmark of nephrite jade.
-The quality of this Siberian nephrite jade is very high. It offers a crisp, even color combined with good translucency and a moderate texture. This means it could easily be used to make jade jewelry, carvings or other objets d’art by a skilled craftsman.
-Because we know the dimensions and weight of this Siberian nephrite jade slab, we can calculate its density to help confirm its genuineness. We can do this by dividing the weight of the piece (1,650 grams) by its volume (538.6 cm3). This gives us a density of approximately 3.06 gm/cm3, which is well within the range of natural nephrite jades (2.9 – 3.3 gm/cm3).
-There is nothing like the heft and solidity of a jade block held in the hand. In some ways, I view rough jade as “the other bullion”. It is a great alternative to simply stacking gold and silver bars for those with more adventurous investment tastes.
-At an asking price of only $109 per kilogram (or around $50 per pound), this block of rough Siberian nephrite jade is an incredible bargain, especially considering that similar quality Siberian material may sell in the Chinese market for several hundred dollars a kilo!
Cons:
-Because it is coming all the way from Russia, the shipping costs on this block of jade are relatively high. According to Etsy, it would cost $32 to transport the stone to my little corner of the United States and would take between 10 and 40 business days to arrive!
-Although this slab of Siberian nephrite jade is good quality, it is not of the very highest quality. The very best material would have absolutely no chromite inclusions or veining at all. But top-quality nephrite jade is both incredibly rare and unbelievably expensive.
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