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Hunting for Jade

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George Harlow

I travel all over the world to study jade, particularly jadeite rock. Here's a look at two of the places where jade is found: Guatemala and Myanmar.

Making Sense of Jade

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scrapbook page with pictures of George Harlow in the field, and with jade specimens back at the museum
team cutting smaller pieces of jade from large boulder

cutting jade

Jade is a natural resource used by Guatemalans for art and jewelry. We work with Guatemalan scientists, officials, and businessmen so they will learn more about their jade deposits. In this picture, my teammates are cutting smaller pieces of jade from this big boulder.

team loading pack of jade pieces onto a horse's back

transporting jade

The government gives us permission to collect rocks for scientific study. We collect small rocks or busted pieces from boulders. Then we carry them out of the wilds in our packs or on horseback.

looking for jade in Guatemalan plaza

collecting other samples

I also buy jade from jaderos and shops if they can tell me where each piece was found. I want to collect many samples that show the variety of jade in Guatemala.

George Harlow sitting on patio with many raw jade samples spread out

harvested jade

On each trip, I try to pick raw jades and lots of rocks that are different from what I already have. Look at all the rocks we collected! Here they are right outside of our hotel.

George Harlow in front of collection cabinet with many samples on shelves

at the museum

Back at the Museum, we study all the pieces of jade that we collected. Our studies help us figure out how and when jade formed. We also want to find out how jade and other rocks vary across different areas in Guatemala. I can't wait to go back to Guatemala to find more jade!

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Credits

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Image Credits:

All field photos: courtesy of George Harlow and colleagues; George Harlow and collection: courtesy of AMNH, Denis Finnin