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Mason-Kay Jade to Hold Inaugural International Jade Summit
The event, which will co-locate with the Monterey Bay Jade Festival, will bring education sessions focused on jade to the United States.
Mason-Kay Jade’s 2025 International Jade Summit will take place on Saturday, June 14, at the same time as the Monterey Bay Jade Festival in Monterey, California.
Pacific Grove, Calif.—Mason-Kay Jade has announced its first International Jade Summit later this year in California.
The new professional jade conference will comprise a full day of education sessions tailored to jade enthusiasts and gemologists, a “first-of-its-kind” jade-focused education event for the United States, Mason-Kay Jade said.
It is slated for Saturday, June 14, in conjunction with the annual Monterey Bay Jade Festival, which will run from June 13-15 at Custom House Plaza in Monterey State Historic Park in Monterey, California.
The summit will be held at the nearby Monterey History and Art at Stanton Center.
Throughout the four sessions, a jade miner, jade discoverer, gemologist, and geologist/geophysicist will present on the two jades, Jadeite jade and Nephrite jade.
Mason-Kay Jade invites gemologists, jewelry appraisers, and retail jewelry sales staff to attend the summit and expand their knowledge of the colored gemstone and its market.
The event is also open to customers and enthusiasts.
Summit organizers encourage attendees to take time between seminars to explore the Georg Schmerholz Jade Carving Exhibition located next door to the event and to visit the more than 40 Jadeite and Nephrite jade vendors at the festival.
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The new professional jade conference will comprise a full day of education sessions tailored to jade enthusiasts and gemologists, a “first-of-its-kind” jade-focused education event for the United States, Mason-Kay Jade said.
It is slated for Saturday, June 14, in conjunction with the annual Monterey Bay Jade Festival, which will run from June 13-15 at Custom House Plaza in Monterey State Historic Park in Monterey, California.
The summit will be held at the nearby Monterey History and Art at Stanton Center.
Throughout the four sessions, a jade miner, jade discoverer, gemologist, and geologist/geophysicist will present on the two jades, Jadeite jade and Nephrite jade.
Mason-Kay Jade invites gemologists, jewelry appraisers, and retail jewelry sales staff to attend the summit and expand their knowledge of the colored gemstone and its market.
The event is also open to customers and enthusiasts.
Summit organizers encourage attendees to take time between seminars to explore the Georg Schmerholz Jade Carving Exhibition located next door to the event and to visit the more than 40 Jadeite and Nephrite jade vendors at the festival.
The summit will begin at 10 a.m. with a welcome breakfast offering networking opportunities.
The first education seminar will run from 11 a.m. to noon with Mary Lou Ridinger, an archeologist, owner of Jade Maya, and the discoverer of the Guatemalan Jadeite jade deposits, presenting on “Guatemalan Jadeite Jade.”
Lunch will be from noon to 1:30 p.m.
From 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., Eugene (Lou) Blanck, a geophysicist, geologist, and vice president and chief financial officer of Earth Design Inc., will present his seminar, “Nephrite Jade Formation.”
Kirk Makepeace, owner of Jade West Corp., one of the largest producers and exporters of nephrite jade in the world, and an expert in Canadian nephrite jade history, geology, and value, will present “Canadian Jade Mining” from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.
The day’s final educational seminar will run from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., with gemologist Jeff Mason, owner of Mason-Kay Jade and one of the nation’s leading experts in Jadeite jade testing and valuation, presenting “Natural Vs. Treated Jadeite Jade.”
Tickets to the summit include all-day access to the seminars, the welcome breakfast, and a voucher for lunch.
Admission is $60 and can be purchased through Mason-Kay Jade’s Eventbrite.
For more information on the Monterey Bay Jade Festival and the 2025 International Jade Summit, visit the festival’s website.
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