Jade: Did you mean...?

Dolmens (in Korean: koindol or chisongmyo) are simple structures made of monolithic stones erected during the late Neolithic period or Korean Bronze Age (1st millennium BCE). In ancient Korea they appear most often near...

Dogs were an integral aspect of the lives of the people of Mesoamerica regardless of their location or culture and, throughout the region, were recognized as liminal beings belonging not only to the natural...

The emperors of ancient China had tremendous power and responsibility. Called the 'Son of Heaven', he (and once she) was given a divine right to rule over all people but was expected to promote their best interest and not his...

Jade figurines representing the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac. 18th century CE, Qing Dynasty. Height: c. 5.7 cm. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

The Kunz Axe, a ceremonial axe-head or celt created by the Olmec civilization of Mesoamerica. Carved from jade. (Museum of Natural History, New York)

A Chinese cong of jade, a ritual object commonly found in tombs but of unknown function. Unknown date but probably Neolithic. Height: 12.9 cm. (British Museum, London)

Pre-Columbian Pottery, Jade Museum, San Jose, Costa Rica,

Polychrome ware from the Greater Nicoya Archaeological Region, Jade Museum, San Jose, Costa Rica.

Stone Spheres, Jade Museum, San Jose, Costa Rica.

Peoples, cities and states have traded since antiquity but in the medieval period, things escalated so that goods travelled ever greater distances by land, river and sea. Great cities arose thanks to commerce and international...