Nephrite cultures in prehistoric Northeast Asia

The capacity for symbolic organized behavior, such as the use of languages and ornaments, is a defining characteristic of modern human beings. As gold is for the West, jades have been one of the finest symbolic vessels in the East since prehistory. Jades are a collective term applied to compact aggregates of either of two minerals, nephrite and jadeite. In recent years, a large amount of nephrite accessories have been excavated from Neolithic-Bronze Age archaeological sites in Northeast China, Cis-Baikal and Russian Far East. Rings and disks are the majority of such nephrite accessories, and the similarities and differences in their geological sources, production history and context of use pose important question for how the symbolic application of jade dispersed and evolved in the most part of Asia. The international scientific project described bellow is specially aimed to solve this problem together with some related ones. This timely first-handed investigation is the most comprehensive study thus far of long-distance exchanges and movements of nephrite raw materials, products and production technologies. It will make a significant contribution to the early history of jade symbolism and human interaction in Northeast Asia.