Greenstone, more in store...

At Jade CIty
We have been stopping most mornings for coffee after an hour or so on the road.
Today, after a long ride without sighting any evidence of civilization, we came upon a greenstone store offering free coffee.

Huge greenstone/jade boulders were strewn across the frontage, saws were spinning to cut the boulders, and inside the store coffee was brewing and... Jade souvenirs with traditional Maori designs as well as lots of local designs were on sale.

The company produces up to 900 tonnes of greenstone from its Princess Jade Mine each year and exports most to China. Whereupon it is carved and sent to places like NZ and back to British Columbia.
We were told that the company's ends jade to three locations in NZ for Maori carving and that some of the Maori designs had come to the store from NZ.

British Columbia produces 90% of the world supply of jade.

Jade city(a one store town)








More greenstone than you could fit on a motorbike....




These greenstone boulders littered the site.




Do these look familiar?









Comments

Yvonne Marie Rigby said…
makes you wonder eh!How much of it is made else where.

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