Jade Maya has mined, cut and polished jadeite in Guatemala since 1974, with Guatemalan craftspeople carrying forward the carving traditions the company set out to revive. Museum replicas, one-of-a-kind pieces and Maya day-sign jewellery create a direct place-to-product connection rooted in local stone and craft.
Best for Guatemalan jadeite, Maya replicas and day-sign jewelry
Jade Maya was founded in 1974 by archaeologist Mary Lou Ridinger and her husband Jay Ridinger, who came to Guatemala to solve an archaeological problem. They wanted to know what had become of the jade sources used by the Maya and six other ancient civilizations over three thousand years. That year they rediscovered the deposits along the tectonic plate boundary that runs east to west through central Guatemala. Samples sent to the Gemological Institute of America confirmed jadeite, which is the harder and rarer of the two jades. Instead of exporting rough stone, the Ridingers chose to restart a carving industry that had been lost at the Spanish Conquest. They built a factory in September 1974 and trained descendants of the Maya to carve replicas of ancient treasures. The company now describes some 63,000 square feet of factory and showroom space with a museum. Over 300 Guatemalans earn a living from mining and carving jade, and from selling it. Everything is cut and polished in-house, from museum-quality replicas to jewellery in lavender jade and Olmec blue jade. Finished pieces go straight to the showroom at 4a Calle Oriente No. 34 in Antigua Guatemala, one of eight shops in the country. In March 1999 President Bill Clinton spent two hours in the factory and showroom, and a percentage of web sales supports scholarships through the Maya Conservancy.
Founded in 2012, this Antigua studio takes its name from the Maya underworld phrase for "the place where stones are born," and its jewelers carve jade alongside gold and silver metalwork for rings, cuffs, and earrings. The workshop deliberately leaves tool marks and irregularities visible in the finished pieces, treating that texture as evidence of the hand behind the work, and also teaches jade-carving classes to visitors.
Best for Contemporary jade, gold, and silver jewelry
Mandarina is a Guatemala studio of author jewellery and contemporary handmade pieces inspired by art and nature. It sells slow, handmade work including Huipilitos earrings from reused and restored huipil textile, made in Guatemala.
Ico Jade is an Antigua workshop that cuts rough Guatemalan jadeite and sets it in sterling silver and 14k gold. It was founded by Guatemalan artisans of Maya descent working from the country's jade deposits.
4a Calle Oriente 10 and 3a Calle Oriente 22, Antigua Guatemala
This family-run studio has spent over two decades pairing jade and Maya textile fragments with its own hand-fired ceramic beads, working with more than 35 artisans across three rural production groups to make each necklace or pair of earrings. The beads are shaped, kiln-fired, and hand-dyed in small custom-color batches at the Antigua workshop before final assembly at the two shops on Calle Oriente.
Best for Ceramic-bead jewelry combined with jade and textiles
Orquiholic is a Guatemalan maker of handmade jewellery, clothing and accessories from natural orchids. Founder Jorge Carlos started the Altaverapacense orchid association in 1979, photographed orchids from 1990, and around 2000 developed encapsulated natural orchids. CONAP authorises sustainable use of the species.
Xibalba makes contemporary jewelry in Antigua with a tactile language of jade, metal, texture and deliberate imperfection. Founded in 2012, the studio extends its rings, cuffs and bracelets into custom work and hands-on workshops, while an international storefront keeps the collection accessible abroad.
Best for Antigua-made jade jewelry, custom pieces and workshops
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