The diamond-tipped drill whirrs as it cuts into the hard green stone. I feel a sympathy pang in my tooth as Gordon Wells, of New Zealand’s Just Jade Experience, cuts a circle from a huge slab of the green precious stone with surgical precision, then watch as he skillfully shapes the piece with his high-speed grinding. Next, with a series of ever-finer grades of sandpaper, he smooths the surface to create a glossy finish: a laborious process taking up to four hours.

When finished, the light seems to glow off each piece – captured within the translucent green stone that is strangely warm to handle, almost as though it’s alive. Even the most sinuous curves and complex symbols appear somehow organic – as though the design was already sitting at the heart of the gemstone – just waiting to be uncovered.

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