Greenstone (archaeology)

Greenstone (archaeology)

Greenstone is a common generic term for valuable, green-hued minerals and stones which were used in the fashioning of jewelry, statuettes, ritual tools, and various other artefacts in early cultures. Greenstone artefacts may be made of greenschist, chlorastrolite, serpentine, omphacite, chrysoprase, or other green-hued minerals. [Joyce et al., and Pool, p. 150.] The term can also, though less commonly, refer to jade.

Greenstone minerals were presumably selected for their color rather than their chemical composition.

Notes

References

*aut|Joyce, Rosemary; Hendon, Julia (2003) "Mesoamerican Archaeology: Theory and Practice", Blackwell Publishing Limited , London.
*cite book |author=aut|Pool, Christopher A. |year=2007 |title=Olmec Archaeology and Early Mesoamerica|location=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-78882-3


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