Jade Fever Hunting the Stone of Heaven

About this book

Beautiful, translucent, and indestructible, jade has a mystique that's captivated people since Neolithic times. Stan Leaming, Canada's leading jade geologist, was fascinated by this unusual gem; he is credited with pioneering the emergence of the jade industry in British Columbia. Leaming shares his unique insight into the science and magic of jade in this passionate exploration of the green stone's development from prehistoric tool to objet d'art.

In Jade Fever the reader is invited along with Leaming, a fascinating subject in himself, on a trip around the world as he hunts for the stone of heaven throughout B.C. and Canada, the United States, Mexico, Europe, Siberia, China, and even Down Under, where black jade is found.

Jade Fever examines jade's appeal as a global industry, a divine inspiration, a medium for artistic expression, and even as a precipitator of some bizarre crimes. Rockhounds casual and serious will appreciate this comprehensive celebration of jade, enhanced with maps and photographs. The 16-page colour section includes photos of jade art by Lyle Sopel, B.C.'s foremost jade sculptor.

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Biography

Stan Leaming, M.A., spent over a decade as a field geologist before joining the B.C. Geological Survey in 1960, retiring in 1982. Through his particular interest in supporting prospectors and rockhounds, Leaming has been involved in every major jade discovery in B.C. He is the author of Rock and Mineral Collecting in British Columbia and Jade in Canada, and co-author of Guide to Rocks & Minerals of the Northwest.

Rick Hudson, Ph.D., was the editor of the Western Canadian Gemstone Newsletter for five years and is a regular contributor to Canadian Rockhound and British Columbia Rockhound. He authored the two-volume A Field Guide to Gold, Gemstone & Mineral Sites of British Columbia and teaches earth sciences in schools.