Is Jin Xiangyu jade or amber?

According to historical legends, Jin Xiangyu is very rare and very precious, but nobody sees it. Modern Jinxiang jade appeared at the 30th International Geological Congress and was also exhibited at various trade fairs. The ore smelled like chocolate cream, but it was very rare and hard to find, so it was expensive.

"Actually, there is no record of Jinxiangyu in Chinese history, but only the fragrant jade, and the fragrant jade is the amber, which is the incense of Amber." This is an internationally renowned jade scholar and Dr. Wang Chunyun of the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Jin Xiangyu's latest research conclusions. Dr. Wang also pointed out that his research results are inspired by the debate between the Chinese and foreign scholars on the beeswax and amber in the Guangzhou Daily "Boya" edition.

"'Jinxiangyu' is supposed to be related to the famous jade in Chinese history, but now the general understanding of 'Jinxiangyu' has been separated from the historical connection, usually referring to a golden, scented, jade-like stone, popularly It refers to serpentine jade or marble jade that can give off an aroma - although there is some controversy about the latter in the academic circle of Jin Xiangyu.

“Jinxiangyu” has caused a sensation in Chinese jewellery and collections since its emergence in the early 1990s, and it has sold four times the price of gold at its peak. At present, the so-called Jin Xiangyu is still available in Shaanxi and Yunnan. About 50 yuan/kg."

Jin Xiangyu prices ups and downs:

In the early 90s of the last century, Jinxiangyu 300 yuan/g in 2000, Jin Xiangyu sold 380 yuan per gram, ranging from 360 yuan, which was four times the gold price in 2004. Jinxiangyu in Hangzhou was 200 yuan/g in 2005. It was reported that The rare golden scented jade was more than 100,000 yuan/kilogram; in the same year, the price of Jinxiang jade fell all the way due to fraud. In 2006, at the exhibition held in Beijing Gongwangfu, Jin Xiangyu was about RMB 1,000/kg. In 2007, some media said that Jin Xiangyu could easily sell every kilogram. To over 5,000 yuan at present, Jin Xiangyu's market price in Shaanxi Province is about 50 yuan/kg. Review Replay Wu Guozhong [Original Dean of China University of Geosciences (Beijing) Jewellery Institute]: Historical legend, Jin Xiangyu is very rare and very precious, but there is no People see. Modern Jinxiang jade appeared at the 30th International Geological Congress and was also exhibited at various trade fairs. The ore smelled like chocolate cream, but it was very rare and hard to find, so it was expensive.

Zhang Rubo (Professor, Chengdu University of Technology): There is indeed a jade that will give out fragrance in the natural world (the material of jade is the mineral). This type of jade can only be formed in a special geological environment, and it is unlikely that there will be a large number of natural occurrences. The fake gold fragrant jade that appeared in Guangdong, Guangxi, Shenzhen, Chengdu and other places was mostly coated with a layer of brown organic paint on the surface of marble, and then soaked in a certain kind of fragrant essence. The fake fragrant jade and the real one were measured with an infrared analyzer. The infrared spectrum of Jin Xiangyu is completely different.

Wang Shiyao (Deputy Director of the Baoyu Stone Testing Center of Peking University): These scented stones are serpentinized marbles with a brown-yellow appearance and relatively developed fissures with strong adsorption capacity. The source of the aroma may be the adsorption of organic aromatic gases during the formation of underground petroleum. It may also be the ancient plants that have many aromatic plants. Long-term defoliation or the death of plants after the death of the water flowing to the ground is adsorbed and preserved. It is also possible that the bacteria release the scented liquid during the decomposition of the "food" process. However, there are many people who are now inclined to the second possibility. This can also explain the difference in the flavor of Jinxiangyu found in different locations on the same mountain.

Chinese history has no Jin Xiangyu reporter: Jin Xiangyu This kind of stone is also one of the darlings of the art market in recent years, but its price is high and low, making it difficult to understand. Please combine your own research to discuss what is Jin Xiangyu.

Wang Chunyun: Indeed, since the appearance of “Jinxiangyu” in the early 1990s, it has caused a sensation in the Chinese jewellery industry and the collection industry. Its peak price is four times that of gold! Many media also reported one after another.

My research found that "Jinxiangyu" should be related to the famous jade in Chinese history, but now the general understanding of "Jinxiangyu" has been separated from the historical connection, usually referring to a golden, scented, jade-like stone In general, it refers to the serpentine jade or marble jade that can give off an aroma—though the domestic “Jinxiangyu” academic circle has some controversy over the latter.

Reporter: Is Jin Xiangyu carrying rich traditional culture like jade, amber and beeswax? When did this concept occur?

Wang Chunyun: In fact, there is no record of “Jinxiangyu” in Chinese history. Tang Suyin's essay "Duyang Zaishi" was the earliest record of "Scented Jade Evil", followed by Ming Gu Ying Tai's essay "The Museum of Natural History", Ching Chen Zhilong's essay "Gezhi Mirror", Qing Ji Xiaoxuan's writer "Si Ku Quan Shu" and the author of the book "Cottage notes" cited this record, and the modern "Jinxiangyu" research scholars also agreed that the concept of "Jinxiangyu" is also derived from this record. Some people suggested that “Jinxiangyu” may have come from the historically famous “Jingshanyu” (ie, He’s) or “Jinxiangyu” (ie, Chuanguo Yuxi). Some people even speculated that it may be derived from folklore. "I don't know Jin Xiangyu" or "There is hard money to buy Jin Xiangyu." These are basically wishful talks. Therefore, there is no Jin Xiangyu in the history of China, only Xiangyu.

In 1991, the Shaanxi peasant Lu Liping discovered a “flavored stone” with chocolate aromas. In 1996, at the 30th International Geological Congress held in Beijing, he exhibited a 442-gram “Jinxiangyu” which was later donated to the China Geological Museum Collection. This is the origin of the modern version of "Jin Xiangyu."

Xiang Po is the history of Xiangyu?

Reporter: Regarding Jin Xiangyu, the academic community has been arguing. What is your opinion on this?

Wang Chunyun: After the appearance of “Jinxiangyu”, the Shaanxi Provincial Government set up a special topic. Several domestic universities, several institutes, and several associations all conducted research, and even held a nationwide informal academic conference. However, it was strange. There is no formal academic paper published. Obviously, these academic discussions all confuse the history of Chinese records without Jin Xiangyu. They also deliberately evaded articles that criticized “Jinxiangyu” as a **, and therefore did not abide by basic academic norms.

Reporter: Your opinion is: There is no Jin Xiangyu in Chinese history, but only Xiangyu. Please briefly explain why.

Wang Chunyun: The research method I use is the Xun Guqin philology, combined with modern mineralogy and archeology. To put it simply, I want to read the description about Xiangyu in Duyang Zaishi, because this is Jinxiangyu. The focus of the study.

The fragrant jade described in "Duyang Zaishi" is undoubtedly amber, and it is amber in amber. Here I briefly introduce the research conclusion: Xiangyu is jade, but it is not true jade. Ming Li Shizhen's "Compendium of Materia Medica" said that the fragrant jade is "a common script from jade to its type of jade". Zhang Hongyi also said in the "Shi Ya" in 1921 that "it is not the so-called Jade Appraisal". In my paper “Classification System of Jade Culture” 10 years ago, I pointed out that the broad meaning of jade or jade is “the beauty of stone”, that is, all the beautiful stones in nature can be called jade, and can be specifically expressed in jade characters. For example, coal fines are called coal jade and pearls are called pearl jade. Amber as an organic gem natural can also be called jade, that is, fragrant jade! The fragrant jade is fragrant even if it is ground into a powder, because its fragrance is inherent in amber, an organic gem. In addition, “Duyang Zaishi” also describes the fragile brittleness, fragility and size of fragrant jade, and particularly high prices, all of which are in good agreement with the characteristics of bulk amber.

It can be inferred that the material composition of the fragrant jade cannot be another jade mineral, because the jade mineral is the jade-like stone, its basic structural characteristics must be dense, so whether it is serpentine jade or marble jade, as long as the surface is not Alterations occur. As long as there is no crack that can reach deep into the texture, aromatic macromolecule organic matter should penetrate into the deep structure of dense jade. Even if it penetrates micro-fissures occasionally, it cannot be preserved for a long time. The serpentine mineral lattice in the serpentine jade is thought to have a coiled structure. Therefore, there is no theoretical basis for accepting aromatic macromolecular organics because of the unit cell or supercell of serpentine. The axis length is only 4 to 10 angstroms, and the curl structure in the crystal lattice is even smaller, and the general aromatic macromolecule is usually not less than 10 angstroms.

Reporter: Jin Xiangyu's charm lies in that although it is a stone, it can give off aroma. How do you evaluate Jin Xiangyu's aroma test results?

Wang Chunyun: As to whether the serpentine jade that has been detected or the aroma of controversial marble jade in the domestic "Jinxiangyu" constellation came from, I believe that the production of this aroma is only possible because the aroma is either caused by fissure development. As the expanded mineral porosity enters, or the expanded mineral porosity is introduced through surface alterations, the aroma is not only impossible to sustain, but the production process can also be replicated by manual methods and it is easy to forge.

Jasmine "sweetness" comes from itself. Reporter: Since the fragrant jade is amber, isn't it all fragrant jade?

Wang Chunyun: Almost. In fact, all ambers have aromas, because all the amber are resin fossils formed by long geology of the rosin-like resin of coniferous plants. They all contain aromatic succinic and amber resins and are heated to 150 degrees. That is, it softens and melts when it is 250 to 300 degrees, and it can emit aromatic rosin. Among them, Champagne is the best and most intense aroma of high-grade varieties, and is best known in ancient times. Other low-grade varieties are still used today to extract spices. For example, Ge Jin, from the Eastern Jin Dynasty, wrote that “Zijing Zaji” describes Zhao Feiyan’s use of amber pillows to ingest aromatics.

Reporter: Jin Xiangyu has a lot of fate in the art market: After appearing in China in the early 1990s, the price was once four times that of gold. However, from the time of 2007 to the turn of 2008, Jin Xiangyu did not care when it appeared at Panyu National Kistler Antique Flower & Cultural Art Exhibition. This shows that people are skeptical about the academic knowledge and collection value of Jin Xiangyu. Do you think Jin Xiangyu has any investment collection value in the end?

Wang Chunyun: I personally think that Jin Xiangyu is worth collecting. Because this collection can not only make people appreciate the profound feelings of human exploration of nature, but also think about what the scientific research with certain academic connotations really has value and significance - to know The original collection of one kilogram of "Jinxiangyu" was to spend hundreds of thousands of yuan. At present, the so-called Jin Xiangyu is still available in Shaanxi and Yunnan. The market price is about RMB 50/kg. It is said that there is a “milk taste”.

Reporter: How do you feel about your academic research on Xiangyu?

Wang Chunyun: Frankly speaking, the inspiration for this study came from the first two issues of "Boya" on beeswax and amber. The debate between the French Orientalist Dr. Jean-Bruelle Anton and Mr. Qiu Zhili of Sun Yat-Sen University was quite exciting. It also triggered my reflection on the issue of "Jin Xiangyu."

I think: Our study of historical jewels should not forget history, but when we trace back history, I really realized the hardships of human exploration of nature: after humans appeared on the earth 3 million years ago, they didn’t know until 600 BC Until the moon did not shine, it was not until 2004 that the Ming Dynasty Pearl actually did not shine. It was only today that it was known that the original jadeite was amber.