Nephrite and other Early Metal Age exchange networks

Abstract

In the past decade, archaeological studies have revealed intensive Early Metal Age exchange systems stretching across the South China Sea. Many new items and technologies were involved in this long‐distance trade (Plate 12) and several networks of movement can be traced. Two of the main raw materials with identifiable geochemical origins were nephrite (jade) from Fengtian near Hualian, located in a tectonically unstable region of eastern Taiwan, and muscovitemica (often termed “Mindoro jade”) from southern Mindoro Island in the western Philippines. Glass beads and objects of bronze, gold, and iron also traveled, but these are not so clearly traced to specific sources. Show more