Suzhou jade carving is a traditional Suzhou craft. In ancient China, the Suzhou jade carving craftsmen were hired to make various jade articles for the royal family. According to the record, “Although the finest jades are collected in Beijing, the best crafts are mainly found in the Suzhou area."
Suzhou is one of the birthplaces of Chinese jade carvings. The earliest polished Chinese jades were found in the upper middle layer of the Meiyan ancient cultural sites in Wujiang city and Wuxian county, Caoxie Mountain, around 5,000—6,000 years ago.
There have been many renowned jade craftsmen throughout the history of Suzhou, for example, the artists He Si, Liu Shen, Lu Zigang, etc in Ming Dynasty. Suzhou was also one of the earliest cities developing the handicraft industry all over the country. According to the records, the craftsmen in Suzhou used to engrave jade, gold and other exquisite craftworks under the microscope, and they cleaned the traces through sand water. Therefore, their works are ingenious and later generally referred to “made in Suzhou”. The unprecedented prosperity of the handicraft industry has pushed Suzhou jade to its peak, with exquisite workmanship and large numbers of celebrities, forming a distinctive regional Suzhou flavor. And later, Suzhou jade carving became the leader of its kind around the country, and its jade carving skills become well-known all over the country.
