(Photo) The making of the jade disks for the Beijing Olympic medals

The stonemason saws a block of stone.

(BEIJING, April 1) -- The designs of the Beijing 2008 Olympic gold, silver and bronze medals were unveiled on March 27, 2007, on the occasion of the 500-day countdown to the Games. It was revealed that jade disks would be set into the medals to add a unique Chinese quality to the medals, creating a fusion of Chinese and Western design elements.

Recently, production of the 3,030 jade disks to be used in the Beijing Olympic medals was completed. These photos show scenes from the production of the jade pieces.

Leftover stone

With disks made of Kunlun jade from Qinghai and gold, silver and bronze material from Australia and Chile, the jade disk-inlaid medals will be ready in June. Kunlun jade was selected for the medals because of its high quality and abundance, according to an expert involved in the analysis and selection of jade for the medals.

Jade processing room

Cutting the jade disks