Message
Anita:
The question here is not whether you are correct about fake jades were being made and were being sold for high profit. In that regard, I totally agree with you.
The question is you should not render generalized and dramatic statements without any evidence or supports regarding the availability and price of nephrite jade (raw material).
The reason the BC nephrite jades were classified into different grades had their reasons, grades that were lower than carving grades would probably be unsutiable for carving. Even with Taiwan jades, a very high quality nephrite jade, they initially encountered difficulty in carving them because they would break during the carving process. Such lower grades can only be used for tile or other commercial purposes.
The thing I am trying to point out is that genuine "nephrite" jade is a semi-rare (if not rare) natural resource and there are not too many places where it can be mined. Similar to gold mines, when the price of the commodity (such as gold and silver) drops so low, it would become unprofitable for the mines to continue their productions. Therefore, when gold price dropped to around US $300 - 350 a troy ounce, many gold mines were closed. Similarly, if the wholesale price of BC nephrite jade is only $4 a kg, what nephrite mines could remain open for productions?
The increase in oil prices jacks up the fuel cost and therefore the production costs and transporatation costs for the operation of nephrite mines. With global inflations, the labor costs will also have to increase. In short, there is absolutely no way any "decent" and genuine BC nephrite jades can be bought at US$4 a kg in any substantial quantity anywhere in the world. Even in Canada, one cannot hope to purchase them in such low price. I believe you had exaggerated both the availability and costs of nephrite.
If you refer to this article published on the July/August 2005 issue of Canadaian Geographic magaine:
http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/magazine/ja05/feature.asp
It says,
"In 2004, jade boulders in B.C. sold for about $15 a kilogram, varying according to the quality of the stone. A small fraction goes to local artisans, but most is shipped to the workbenches of hundreds of experienced carvers in Hong Kong, Taiwan or mainland China. B.C. jade is prized for its toughness and its almost mirror finish when polished."
It is true that inferior grades of BC nephrite jade can be bought in price as low as $2 a kg but such low-quality jade is unsuitable for carvings. On the other side, high grade BC jade can fetch up to $100 per kg in wholesale price.
In short, there are not too many places (or any) in China one would expect to find raw BC nephrite jades at US$4 a kg or find jade carvings made of such material in US$1 a piece. If you can find them in China, please do enlighten us by posting them here in this forum. Thanks.
Bill
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