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beautiful carvings
Jade made great tools, but it's also absolutely beautiful! For thousands of years, people have been carving in this strong, durable material. They used jade to make amazing art objects and jewelry.
ground into shapes
But Jade is such a strong and durable material that you can't cut it with a knife. Instead, people use grit, grains of tiny, hard materials like quartz sand, to slowly grind jade into different shapes.
carving techniques
Today, people also use diamond saws or grinding tools to carve jade. These tools make the carving process easier and faster. But a long time ago, before metal was known, jade was carved with other rocks or materials like wood and bamboo. This takes a long time!
polishing
People in southeast Asia still use bamboo to polish jade. It works because bamboo contains tiny quartz crystals that act as grit. Bamboo produces an excellent polish.
Kunz Axe
The Kunz axe is a giant chopper or "celt" that was carved by the Olmec over 2,000 years ago. Look at all the details on the front of the axe. One person may have spent months carving it.