jadeite

hieroglyphs inscribed on jade

No better way to spend a rainy afternoon than visiting the Jade Museum in San Jose Costa Rica, a great way to spend two hours.

Interestingly  enough no sources of jade have been discovered in Costa Rica therefore it must have come to Costa Rica through the trade routes of it’s northern neighbors the Aztecs of Mexico and the Mayan of Guatemala.  As well as the Incas, the neighbor from South America.

Jade with it’s unique symbolic energy as been known to man for 7,000 years, and because of it’s toughness, in prehistoric times it was a material used to make weapons and tools.

As early as 3,000 B.C. it was known in China as the “royal gem”.  Jade embodies the Confucian virtues of wisdom, justice, compassion, modesty, and courage.

In ancient Egypt jade was admired as the stone of love, inner peace, harmony, and balance.

The Mayan people of Pre Columbian Mesoamerica found jade in the Motagua River Valley of Guatemala.  They shaped it into symbolic figures and used it in  religious rituals.  Also, as a medium upon which hieroglyphs were inscribed.

The Jade museum is one of Costa Rica’s best museums.  You will find beautifully displayed pieces of jade from ornamental head pieces, elaborate necklaces, revered animal figures, to gorgeous ornate pottery pieces.  Some dating back to 400 B.C.

The  Jade museum takes about 1 hour to 1.5 hours to see.  It is located  downtown San Jose on the first floor  of the INS (Instituto Nacional de Seguros) or in English, the National Insurance Building.  Hours: Monday thru Friday 8:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.   Saturday 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.   Adm fee is $7    Students with student ID $4.   Costa Ricans have a special entrance fee.

Highly recommended.

I’d love to hear about your visit to the Jade Museum.  click on comment at end of this article, or click on reply.  You can also click on Contact Us at the top of this page. Thanks for reading 10.255.150.253/costaricalearn