昆仑既出，温润天下。和田玉为透闪石—阳起石系列之致密集合体，纤维交织，韧冠群玉。依国家标准《和田玉 鉴定与分类》（GB/T 38821-2020），按颜色分为八类，按产状分为四种；其脂白温润、若凝若酥者，尊为"羊脂白玉"，为软玉之极品。 From the Kunlun it came, and warmed the world. Hetian jade is a dense aggregate of the tremolite–actinolite series, felted in texture and toughest of all jades. Under national standard GB/T 38821-2020 it is classed by colour into eight kinds and by occurrence into four; the finest — white as rendered fat, unctuous and warm — is honoured as mutton-fat white, the summit of nephrite.
脂白微凝，油润无瑕，历代贡玉之首，价逾黄金。Unctuous, faintly congealed white of flawless grain; the first of tribute jades, dearer than gold.
色白质纯，透闪石含量常逾九成八，玉牌玉佩之正材。Pure white body, tremolite often above 98 percent; the canonical stock for plaques and pendants.
介于白青之间，温和内敛，存世器物最众。Between white and qing — temperate and reserved, the most abundant class among surviving works.
色如晚黛，块度宏大，清宫大型玉山多取青玉。Deep grey-green of great block size; the Qing court's monumental jade mountains were carved from it.
菠菜之绿，多含铬铁矿点，玛纳斯与俄料著称。Spinach green flecked with chromite; Manas and Russian material are the noted sources.
色若蒸栗、秋葵者贵，产出至稀，明清两代尤重。Prized when the hue of steamed chestnut; exceedingly scarce, esteemed above others in Ming and Qing.
铁质浸润呈红糖之色，巧雕常借糖色为俏。Iron-stained to the tone of brown sugar; carvers turn the sugar skin to pictorial advantage.
石墨致色，漆黑如墨，光下泛青，古称"玄玉"。Coloured by graphite, ink-black with a green cast in strong light; the "dark jade" of the classics.
经河水亿万年冲磨，卵形皮壳，质最紧结油润，玉龙喀什河所出为贵。皮色之枣红、洒金，尤为藏家所重。Pebbles milled for aeons in river gravels; oval, skinned, densest and most unctuous — the White Jade River yield is supreme, its jujube-red and gold-flecked skins prized by collectors.
离矿未远、初经水磨，棱角略圆，质地介于山料籽料之间。Carried a short way from the lode and lightly water-worn; edges softened, quality between mountain and seed.
原生矿脉直接开采，块度大而棱角分明，为大型玉雕主要来源。Quarried from the primary vein; large, angular blocks that supply monumental carving.
裸露戈壁，经风沙千年砺洗，表面波状砂痕，质坚色沉。Exposed on the desert floor and scoured by wind-borne sand; rippled skin, hard body, sombre tone.
上品之玉，细腻致密而油性内蕴：侧光不见结构为"无结构"，抚之如凝脂。密度、油润与老熟度，为软玉估值第一义。The finest stone is dense and finely knit, its oiliness held within: no visible grain under raking light, the touch of congealed fat. Density, unctuousness and maturity are the first measure of nephrite's worth.
白求脂白而忌僵白，黄求熟栗，碧求菠绿沉匀。色贵正、贵匀、贵活；皮色天成者，须辨染色作伪。In white, the tone of fat, never of chalk; in yellow, ripe chestnut; in spinach green, deep and even. Colour is prized true, even and alive — and natural skin must be told from dye.
玉不琢不成器。审其线条之劲挺、地子之平整、抛光之温润；名家款识与时代风格，皆入考据。Jade uncarved makes no vessel. Judge the vigour of line, the evenness of ground, the warmth of polish; masters' marks and period style all enter the reckoning.