The patterns of China's jade ware have rich connotations showing strong auspicious colors. Bats and gourds were often used as a basis for more than 100 patterns because the Chinese words (bat and gird) sound like "good fortune" in the Chinese language. When a bat was carved on an ancient coin with a hole, it meant fortune was at hand. When many bats were put with birthday peaches, they referred to fortune and longevity. If bats were mixed with sika, birthday peaches and magpies, they also had a good meaning. All these reflected the ancient Chinese people's yearning for a happy life and revealed the essence of China's traditional culture.

Jade in China is varied and can be divided into two categories: hard and soft. Good materials provide strong basics for jade ware carving, but the value of a jade object depends on the skills and reputation of craftsmen, the dates of carving, peculiar modeling and the owner's status. Certainly, different people will have various views on the value of the same jade object. It is difficult to have a unanimous standard. Due to the high value of ancient jade ware, there is an equally long tradition of fake jade ware, which looks much like the real thing. Jade ware collectors should be careful and seek the opinions of professionals before making any major purchases.

Jade carving appeared first in the Shang and Zhou dynasties about 3,000 years ago when it had become a separate profession and excavations have shown the fine workmanship of that time. The materials used included all kinds of hard stones, such as jadeite, nephrite, red agate, white agate, crystal, amethyst, coral, ruby and sapphire. It is a special skill to exploit the natural color of a piece of jade to create an effective design. So the most expensive ones are not those of one single color, but those of multiple colors, the carving skillfully enhancing the different colors in an object. The Han scholar, Xu Shen, described that: "Jade is the fairest of stones. It is endowed with five virtues. Charity is typified by its luster, bright yet warm; rectitude by its translucency, revealing the color and markings within; wisdom by the purity and penetrating quality of its note when the stone is struck; courage, in that it may be broken, but cannot be bent; equity, in that it has sharp angles, which yet injure none."

Attributes Jade has been blessed by nature with many fine attributes - jade is solid in texture, beautiful in color, comfortable to the touch, and produces a pleasant sound when tapped. These qualities matched the ethical standards and codes of conduct of the ancient people and were hence personified. Confucius (551-479 BC) concluded that jade had 11 virtues, such as benevolence (being smooth and lustrous), fidelity (the feel never irritates the skin), polite etiquette (there was an order of wearing), and sincerity (a flaw in jade never hides itself). The Confucian culture advocated that a gentleman should define his manners and conduct in accordance with the virtues of jade.

For a long time, wearing jade ornaments was in vogue. Ornaments were either a single piece of jade or comprised of as many as nine pieces strung together. People used the ornaments to symbolize their social status. The ornaments were carved with auspicious designs and words that wished good luck and happy lives. Wearing jade ornaments was most popular during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Those who did not wear them were considered improperly dressed, and houses without jade decorations were not considered homes. For poor and ordinary people who could not afford real jade, they would put up a few couplets that said something like "the hall shines with gold and jade." For women, jade bracelets took up most space in their jewelry boxes. Bracelets received as engagement and wedding gifts were as precious as today's diamond wedding rings. The Chinese describe a good marriage as a "gold and jade marriage."