Nephrite

A variety of Tremolite, nephrite consists of gristly crystals and is commonly green or creamy white in color. The gemstone is mostly found in the countries like China, New Zealand, Russia, Guatemala, Australia, North America, Taiwan, Zimbabwe, Italy and the Swiss Alps. Lapidary nephrites are mostly found in Canada. Nephrite and Jadeite are considered as “ zhen yu” meaning “ genuine jade” in China.

It was difficult for the gemologists to differentiate between the two gemstones because of their resembling properties. During nineteenth century mineralogists started distinguishing between the two stones. The hardness of the stone is 6 to 6.5. These two minerals jadeite and nephrite are popularly known as jade. The other colors in which this stone is available are bluish gray, grayish white and grey.

The semi precious nephrite stones are hard and comprises of close-grained materials. This gemstone is more abundantly found than jadeite and hence the latter is regarded as the more precious one. Though having many streaks and veins, nephrites are still regarded as valuable stones.

This gemstone is mostly used as a decorative item and is extensively used in carvings, beads. The name nephrite came from the Latin word “ lapis nephriticus”. The stone is available in white and light yellow variety and is commonly known as the “ mutton fat jade” in China. The structure is monoclinic in nature.

Various online stone sellers are there to provide you with the best quality nephrite jade. Following are few names of various online stone sellers: