An 18-ton chicken-blood stone showcased in Guilin. (Photo : China News)
A Guilin jade exhibit in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region boasts an 18-ton chicken-blood stone which reportedly costs about 300 million yuan, or approximately $48 million, in the Chinese rare-stone market.
The chicken-blood stone is a form of chalcedony, which is a cryptocrystalline combination of quartz and its monoclinic polymorph moganite.
Contrary to the classic bloodstone which is described to have green chalcedony with red inclusions of iron oxide or red jasper, a genuine chicken-blood stone is generally colored off-white, yellowish to brownish, or gray, including a darker shade or nearly black.
It has streaks of bright red cinnabar-rich zones, commonly described to be "like blood splashed on the stone in a free pattern" and sports a pearly to subadamantine luster.
Such bloodstone is commonly presented as gifts to leaders of foreign countries and is extremely popular among collectors from all over the world.
The piece seen at the natural jade hall in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region is 1 meter thick, 2.28 meters high and 4.1 meters wide, and has a bright ruby-like color.
It is also described to contain wonderful images of Buddha and magnificent sunrises, clouds and mountain summits which add a glorious effect on the massive jade.
Because of this, it was given the name "colorful life."
According to Guilin Chicken Bloodstone Association Vice-Chairman Yu Qiuming, who is also the owner of the exhibited stone, the 18-ton chicken-blood stone came from the town of Sanmen, one of the country's major sources of such luxurious jades.
Based on an examination conducted by the Guilin Mineral and Geology Test Center, the bloodstone contains 96.66 percent of dioxide, which makes it rare and more precious.
