The value of jades, China's imperial symbol

If you own one or more Chinese jade objects, and would like to know its value, our state-approved experts and auctioneers will offer you their appraisal services.

Our specialists will work to carry out a free appraisal of your work, and will provide you with an accurate estimate of its value on the current market.

Then, should you wish to sell your work, we will direct you to the best possible arrangement to obtain the optimum price.  

Rating and value of Chinese jades

Chinese jades are currently highly sought-after collectors' items. If you own one, it may be worth more than you think. On the art market, prices for these objects can be very high under the auctioneer's hammer.  

They are particularly prized, and the price at which they sell on the art market ranges from €100 to €50,000, a fairly substantial range, but one that says a lot about the value that can be attributed to these objects.  

In 2013, a jade statuette from China sold for €1.56 million, while it was estimated at over 100 times less.

Chinese jades

Chinese jades, at the heart of craftsmanship for millennia, are distinguished by a precision of cut and a symbolic richness that make them exceptional works of art.

Their surface, polished to an incomparable tactile softness, reflects a palette of nuances ranging from deep green to the translucent brilliance of milky whites, testifying to the quality of the stones and the craftsmanship of the artisans.

But it's not just their beauty that fascinates: the motifs, often engraved or carved in bas-relief, use a precise vocabulary borrowed from the natural world - dragons, clouds, lotus flowers - and from a cosmological imaginary rooted in Chinese thought. Each jade is part of a tradition where ornamentation becomes a talisman, where the material is charged with a palpable spirituality.

Whether bi discs or pendants, these objects display a subtle balance between robustness and delicacy, a paradox inherent to the stone itself, hard yet malleable in expert hands.

History and symbolism of jades from China

The symbolism of jades from China is rooted in a multi-millennial history in which the stone, both precious and spiritual, becomes a bridge between the earthly and the celestial.

From the earliest dynasties, jade has been perceived as a mirror of cosmic harmony: its hardness embodies permanence, while its translucence evokes the purity of the soul.

Offers to the gods, protective amulets, funerary ornaments, the uses of this stone are intertwined with rites and beliefs.

Under the Han, it was carved into bi and cong disks, symbolizing respectively heaven and earth, thus uniting opposites in a quest for universal balance.

Later, the Song and Ming dynasties refined this heritage, elevating jade to the status of supreme art, while its motifs - dragons, phoenixes, clouds - reinforced its role as a protective talisman.

In every age, this stone embodies the Chinese ideal of virtue and harmony, a philosophy sculpted into the material.

Focus on the bi disc from the Shanghai museum  

The bi disc from the Han dynasty, preserved at the Shanghai museum, eloquently illustrates the perfection achieved by Chinese craftsmen in working jade, a material charged with strong symbolic and spiritual value.

This circle, translucent green enhanced by delicate white veins, seems almost alive as its polished surface captures and reflects light with a particular softness.

On its face, meticulous engraving reveals cloud patterns and stylized dragons, central figures in the Chinese imagination.

The dragons, symbols of power and transformation, intertwine harmoniously with the celestial clouds, evoking the eternal cycles of nature and the interconnection of universal forces.

The disc, with its perfect form, represents the celestial universe, while its central opening, stripped of all ornamentation, is often interpreted as a passage to the higher planes or immortality.

Through the subtle nuances of the stone and the harmony of the tracery, we perceive a quest for balance between spirituality and materiality, where each incision reflects both technical mastery and profound philosophical reflection.

If the bi was originally designed for ritual use - notably to accompany the deceased into the afterlife - it transcends its utilitarian function to become an artistic manifesto, embodying the ideals of harmony, perfection and wisdom peculiar to Chinese civilization.

Through this jade, the entire cosmological vision of the era is expressed, blending formal finesse and symbolic density.

Focus on the Chinese jade boat from the Peking Palace

This jade boat, a work from the Qing dynasty, asks precisely about the paradox of traditional craftsmanship confronted with timeless symbolism.

At first glance, one might be surprised at the fusion between such a classical form, an object carved from a material of natural hardness and beauty, and the profound meanings it conveys.

Why this choice of the purity of jade, associated with ancient dynasties, to represent the spiritual journey and the quest for balance?

This is where the work's interest lies: far from being merely an aesthetic transposition, this jade boat brings together millennia-old craftsmanship and a metaphor that rises far beyond the merely decorative.

Jade, with its rarity and almost mystical character, becomes here the medium par excellence to illustrate a passage between the tangible and spiritual worlds.

As with the classical arts, which sought a perfect balance between form and function, this work is not content with a representation of a boat as a simple navigational object.

It becomes the vehicle for an inner journey, a journey between the earthly and the ethereal.

The object carved in jade seems frozen in a continuous, unbroken line, a line that doesn't just describe a boat, but tells of a path, a passage, a perfect balance between man and the divine.

The refinement of the material and the quality of the sculpture give this work a simplicity that brings us back to the question of the relationship between the craftsman and tradition: how, through ancestral gestures, does the artist manage to transcend the centuries and deliver a universal, timeless vision?

This jade boat is a perfect illustration of this tension between past and future, the material and spiritual worlds.

Success of these objects on the auction market

The success of Chinese jade objects at auction is striking in its consistency and spectacular rise.

These pieces, witnesses to a centuries-old tradition, succeed in capturing the attention of both Asian and international audiences, fascinated by both their rarity and their symbolic value, in the image of vases, bronzes chinois ou des objets en porcelaine.

Far from being merely a passing fad, the jade market is becoming a stage where history mingles with contemporary demand, where the precious material crosses the centuries without losing its lustre.

One might ask what justifies such interest, and it seems that jade art, while drawing on deep roots, manages to embody a form of timelessness that few other art objects can claim.

The perfection of the sculptures, their technical refinement, as well as the mystical symbols they convey, make them coveted objects not only by collectors, but also by investors, who see in these pieces a value that goes beyond the merely aesthetic.

The symbolism of jade, its role in Chinese culture and its link with the spiritual, make it an art form both charged with meaning and history, transcending market trends.

In this context, each sale is a reminder of the central place these objects occupy in the world's heritage, offering collectors a unique opportunity to appropriate a piece of this continuity between past and present.

Recognizing an original Chinese jade

As these pieces have a certain success, they may not come from Chinese craftsmanship. For this reason, expertise including verification of any markings and a study of the materials is paramount.

Knowing the value of a work 

If you happen to own a Chinese jade object, don't hesitate to request a free appraisal using our form on our website.

A member of our team of experts and licensed auctioneers will contact you promptly to provide you with an estimate of the market value of your piece, as well as any relevant information about it.

If you're thinking of selling your work, our specialists will also help you find alternatives to sell it at the best possible price, taking into account market trends.