Chinese jade has a long history with a glorious history of 7000 years. 7,000 years ago, in the process of selecting stone vessels, the ancestors of Hemudu culture in the south consciously made beautiful stones they found into decorations to beautify their lives, which opened the curtain of jade culture in China. In the middle and late Neolithic Age, four or five thousand years ago, the dawn of jade culture in China shone everywhere in the Liaohe River basin, up and down the Yellow River and north and south of the Yangtze River, especially in Liangzhu culture in Taihu Lake basin and jade unearthed in Hongshan Culture in Liaohe River basin. There are many kinds of jade articles in Liangzhu culture, such as jade cong, jade bi, jade yue, three-pronged jade articles and string jade ornaments. Liangzhu jade, which prides itself on its huge size, is profound and rigorous, and its symmetry and balance have been fully utilized, especially the decorative techniques of bas-relief and special line carving techniques, which have reached the point where it is difficult for future generations to catch up. The description of jade cong and animal face feather, which can best reflect the level of jade carving in Liangzhu, is various and huge, and the characters are inscrutable.

Compared with vessels, Hongshan Culture rarely sees dim square jade, but features animal-shaped jade and round jade. Typical vessels are jade dragon, jade animal-shaped ornaments and jade ring vessels. The biggest feature of Hongshan Culture's jade carving skills is that jade carving craftsmen can skillfully use jade materials with only a few knives, grasp the modeling characteristics of objects, and portray the image of objects vividly. Spirit likeness is the biggest feature of Hongshan ancient jade. Hongshan ancient jade, not big, but exquisite.

From the analysis of Liangzhu and Hongshan ancient jade mostly from large and medium-sized tombs, it is found that Neolithic jade not only has several uses such as offering sacrifices to heaven and earth, but also can ward off evil spirits and symbolize power, wealth and dignity. Jade articles in China have many mysterious colors from the beginning. The legendary Xia Dynasty was the first class society in China. The style of jade articles in Xia Dynasty should be the transitional form from Liangzhu culture to Longshan culture and from Hongshan Culture to Yin Shang jade articles, which can be seen from the jade articles unearthed from Erlitou site in Yanshi, Henan. The seven-hole jade knife unearthed in Erlitou originated from the porous stone knife in the late Neolithic period, and the carving pattern has the origin of the double-line outline of Shang Dynasty jade, which should be Xia Dynasty jade.

Shang civilization is famous not only for its solemn bronzes, but also for its numerous jade articles. In the early Shang Dynasty, there were few jades, and the cutting was rough. The jades in the late Shang Dynasty, represented by those unearthed from the Muhao Tomb in Yinxu, Anyang, produced a total of 755 jades, which can be divided into six categories according to their uses: ritual vessels, ritual vessels, tools, utensils, decorations and miscellaneous vessels. Jade craftsmen in Shang Dynasty began to use Hetian jade, and the quantity was very large. In Shang dynasty, there appeared some practical artifacts such as jasper GUI and sapphire GUI, which imitated bronze wares. The jade articles of animals and figures are much more than geometric jade articles, such as jade dragon, jade phoenix and jade parrot, with different expressions and beautiful appearance. Jade people, or standing, or kneeling, or sitting, have different attitudes; It is difficult to tell whether it is a master, a slave or a prisoner. Jade Turtle, the earliest beautiful jade in China, appeared in Shang Dynasty. The most amazing thing is that the Shang Dynasty has begun to have a large number of round carvings.

Jade works in the Western Zhou Dynasty inherited the double-line sketching technique of jade works in Yin and Shang Dynasties, and created the jade carving technique of thick slope line or thin yinxian line, which shined brilliantly in bird-shaped jade knives and animal-faced jade ornaments. On the whole, however, the jade articles in the Western Zhou Dynasty are not as lively and diverse as those in the Shang Dynasty, but rather rigid and too formal, which is also related to the strict patriarchal clan system and etiquette system in the Western Zhou Dynasty.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, political princes competed for hegemony, academic schools contended, culture and art blossomed, and jade carving art was colorful. During the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the royal family and various princes regarded jade as the embodiment of themselves (gentlemen) for their own interests. They wear jade ornaments to flaunt themselves as virtuous gentlemen. A gentleman never leaves his hand without a reason. Every scholar-bureaucrat, from head to toe, has a series of jade ornaments, especially the Yu Pei series at the waist is more complicated, so the jade ornaments at that time were particularly developed. A large number of Yu Pei with dragons, phoenixes and tigers can embody the spirit of the times, showing S-shape, full of dynamic beauty, with strong Chinese style and national characteristics. There are hidden valley lines in the pattern, hollowing out techniques, and applying single-yinxian hook lines or double-yinxian leaf lines on the ground, which is saturated and harmonious. The jade ornaments on the head of the snake and the arched head of the parrot reflect the level of jade carving and Yu Pei in the Spring and Autumn Period. Yu Pei unearthed from the tomb of Zeng Houyi in Hubei Province and Dahuangpei unearthed from Guwei Village in Huixian County, Henan Province, all made a complete Yu Pei with several pieces of jade, which was the most difficult craft in Yu Pei during the Warring States Period. Jade belt hook and jade sword ornament (jade sword) are new jade articles at this time. From the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period to the Qin and Han Dynasties, jade articles and ritual articles became less and less, while jade articles became more and more. The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period are the peak of the development of ancient jade articles in China, and hollowing and relief are widely used. At that time, a number of jade articles with political, moral and superstitious colors were popular, called Qunyu. Yubi, Yuhuan, Yulong, Yuhuan and Guan Yu have all become part of the jade group. According to archaeological excavations, there are many differences between the combination form of each jade group and the jade system recorded by Li San. Therefore, it is necessary to discuss various problems related to jade groups from the aspects of etiquette system and custom norms in ancient society. What is striking in the Han dynasty is that gold, silver and jade clothes are constantly unearthed, and a large number of daily jade articles are made.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Hetian jade was imported into the Central Plains in large quantities, and royal princes competed to choose Hetian jade. At this time, Confucian scholars combined the study of etiquette with Hetian jade, and used Hetian jade to embody etiquette thought. In order to adapt to the rulers' love for Hetian jade, the traditional Confucian concepts of benevolence, wisdom, righteousness, propriety, joy, loyalty, faithfulness, heaven, earth and morality are compared with the physical and chemical properties of Hetian jade, and then the theories that a gentleman is better than jade, jade has five virtues, nine virtues and eleven virtues are produced. This is the theoretical basis for the enduring jade carving art in China, and it is the spiritual pillar of China people's 7,000-year-old jade-loving fashion. Qin jade unearthed in the Qin Dynasty is rare. Qin Yu's artistic outlook also depends on the new discoveries of underground archaeology.

Jade in Han dynasty inherited the essence of jade carving in Warring States and continued to develop, laying the basic pattern of Chinese jade culture. Jade articles in Han Dynasty can be divided into four categories: ritual jade, burial jade, decorative jade and display jade. Buried jade and displayed jade can best reflect the characteristics and carving technology level of jade in Han Dynasty.

There were many funerals of jade articles in Han Dynasty, but the craft level was not high. It is the display jade that reflects the craft level of jade in Han Dynasty. These realistic furnishings include jade galloping horse, jade bear, jade eagle, jade exorcism and so on. Most of them are round carvings or high relief works, which embodies the bold artistic style of the Han Dynasty. The decorative jade used by the royal family in Han Dynasty tends to decline, and Yu Pei, Yumaogang and Yujin are more common. A large number of decorative jade articles were unearthed in Nanyue State of Han Dynasty, which lived in Lingnan. The jade belt hook combined with dragon and tiger and the hollowed-out dragon and phoenix jade collar are the most exquisite and can be called rare treasures. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the revival of yinxian printmaking prevailed, and the interest in painting was strengthened. In the history of jade craft in China, the Three Kingdoms, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties was a low tide in the high development of jade in Han and Tang Dynasties, and few jade articles were unearthed, all of which had the charm of Han Dynasty. Only Yuhuan and Yuzhan have made innovations. The reason is that I didn't like cutting jade at that time, but it was popular to eat jade. Under the influence of immortal thought and Taoist alchemy, it is crazy to find and eat jade. The etiquette concept of early jade art value disappeared at this time.

The famous jade articles in Sui Dynasty include the golden buckle white jade lamp unearthed from Li's tomb, which is exquisite in production, warm in texture, soft in luster, rich and elegant with golden jade as a foil.

Although the number of jade articles in the Tang Dynasty is small, the jade articles you see are all treasures, and the polishing process is very sophisticated. Jade artisans in Tang Dynasty drew artistic nutrition from painting, sculpture and western region art; Carve jade articles in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The eight-petal jade cup and the animal-headed agate cup are not only the true portrayal of the jade carving art in the Tang Dynasty, but also the physical witness of the cultural exchange between China and the West. The 274-year period from 960 AD to 1234 AD was a period of confrontation and division among Song, Liao and Jin in the history of China. Although the Song Dynasty was not a powerful dynasty, it was an important period in the cultural history of China. Song, Liao and Jin attacked each other, traded with each other, had close economic and cultural exchanges, and jade art flourished. Song Huizong and Evonne's addiction to jade, the rise of epigraphy, the development of meticulous painting, the prosperity of urban economy and the tendency of realism and secularization all directly or indirectly promoted the unprecedented development of jade articles in Song, Liao and Jin Dynasties. The practical decorative jade of Song, Liao and Jin jades occupies an important position, with greatly reduced propriety and greatly increased playfulness, and the jades are closer to real life. The Jade Lotus Cup in the Southern Song Dynasty, the flower-shaped carving of Yu Pei in the Northern Song Dynasty, Nuzhen, the spring water jade and the autumn mountain jade in Qidan are all representative works representing the level of jade carving in this period.

Jade articles in Yuan Dynasty inherited the artistic style of Song and Jin Dynasties and adopted the technique of sudden appearance. Their typical artifacts are profaning mountains and seas, performing arts according to shapes, and sea animals roaming in stormy waves, which are quite heroic. The Ming and Qing Dynasties were the heyday of jade in China, and the beauty of jade quality, exquisite craftsmanship, abundant shapes, numerous works and wide applications were unprecedented. In Ming and Qing dynasties, the royal family loved jade, and Emperor Qianlong spared no effort to advocate it, trying to find a basis for his love of jade in theory. The Ming dynasty jade seal unearthed in Dingling, the chrysanthemum petal-shaped jade plate in Qing dynasty and the jade carving of Tongyin ladies are all imperial jade. At that time, folk jade shops were very prosperous, and Suzhou Zhuxiang was the center of jade carving in Ming Dynasty. Although Liang Yu gathered in the capital, he skillfully pushed Suzhou County.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, jade articles were varied, tea and wine prevailed, and antique jade articles emerged one after another.

Jade articles in Ming and Qing Dynasties draw lessons from painting, carving and craft, and draw lessons from traditional jade carving techniques such as positive line, negative line, flat convex, hidden, convex, hollowing out, three-dimensional, pretty color and ancient burning, which make their works reach a perfect artistic realm.

During the Sui and Tang Dynasties in the Three Kingdoms, the Jin Dynasty, the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the jade styles basically inherited the tradition of the Han Dynasty, but there were few physical objects and few tombs unearthed. During the Song and Ming Dynasties, jade articles were mostly daily utensils, among which antique works were very developed. The Qing dynasty was a period of revitalization of jade production. At that time, the economy was prosperous, and the palace handicrafts and folk handicrafts developed greatly.