Jade Maya (Jade Museum), Antigua

The Jade Museum in Antigua Guatemala offers a fascinating introduction to more than 3,000 years of jade history across seven distinct cultures. Part museum, part workshop, and part jewelry showroom, it has played an important role in reviving Guatemala’s jadeite industry and introducing the country’s ancient jade tradition to an international audience.

The institution was founded in 1974 by archaeologist Mary Lou Ridinger and her husband, Jay. Their work helped rediscover and restore a craft that had largely disappeared after the Spanish conquest. Using sustainably mined Guatemalan jadeite, local artisans create museum-quality jewelry and sculptures inspired by pre-Columbian artistic forms.

For the ancient Maya, jade was more valuable than gold and symbolized life, fertility, power, and eternity. The museum’s displays explain the stone’s geological origins, cultural importance, and traditional carving techniques. Visitors can also learn about jade’s many colors, including green, lavender, black, and blue, and observe how rough stone is transformed into finely polished objects.

The showroom contains a wide selection of earrings, necklaces, pendants, rings, and woven bracelets, along with jade sculptures, wildlife figurines, mask replicas, and models inspired by Maya artifacts. These pieces range from small souvenirs to elaborate collectibles.