What is it about?

Announcement of the jadeite-jade first discovery on the Southside of the Motagua river valley, Guatemala in 1996. Analytical method (petrographic, Raman, Infra-red technicals) employed on the sample.

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Why is it important?

This is the prove that two deposits of jadeite-jade was exploited by Mesoamerican peoples. The sample discovered is the "Olmeca azul" quality carved by Olmecs since 1300 BC.

Perspectives

After this discovery, we can studies the jadeite-jade artefacts of Mesoamerican cultures and mineralogicaly confirmed they comes from the Southside or the Northern side of the Motagua river valley.

PhD François GENDRON
Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle

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This page is a summary of: Discovery of Jadeite-Jade in Guatemala Confirmed by Non-Destructive Raman Microscopy, Journal of Archaeological Science, August 2002, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.1006/jasc.2001.0723.
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