By Thomas S. Elias

This contemporary display consists of a narrowly sliced colorful stone mounted in modified driftwood. The array and movement of many colors resemble an abstract impressionist painting. This metamorphic stone contains many minerals that are responsible for the hues and patterns.

Small boulders of Ruyuan stone were taken from Western Guangdong Province where it originated to Dali in Yunnan Province to cut into thin slices. Dali has many modern facilities for cutting marble into thin pieces for incorporation into furniture, wall hangings, and screens. These fascinating pieces of stone have recently been introduced into the American markets by Yunnan Viewing Stones, www.ynviewstone.com, and sold as jasper.

These brightly colored stones originate in western Guangdong Province where they are mined, shaped, and polished to bring out the vivid colors. They are a metamorphic stone containing many different elements that are responsible for the hues and patterns. This is an ancient stone dating back roughly 600 million years. Ruyuan color stones are relatively new to the viewing stone markets and are found mainly in the southern provinces.