The Fidel Tristan Jade Museum is located in Costa Rica’s capital. Located downtown San José you find the largest collection of jade artifacts of the Americas in one of Costa Rica’s most beautiful museums. The Costa Rica jade collection is on display from Monday to Friday on the 11th floor of the National Insurance Institute, which purchased the collection in 1973. By law this institute was given the authority to safeguard the artifacts and Costa Rica’s heritage and prevent the Costa Rica Jade Museum’s collection going abroad The English word jade that forms the center point of the Costa Rica Jade Museum’s collection, finds it’s origin in the Spanish term ‘piedra de ijada’, which means ‘loin stone’. It is a reference to the medicinal use of jade in curing diseases of the loin and the kidneys. Jade is the common name for the 2 different minerals neprhite and jadeite that were used in the same way. Jade is a relative soft material and can be worked on with for instance bambu to polish. The earliest jade finds are simple and functional such as buttons, arrow heads and beads. After the discoverie of metal aloys and the developing of skills to work with metal, jade lost it’s functional use. Because of it’s shere beauty, it remained popular for decorative purposes.The Costa Rica Jade Museum hosts a collection of jade objects, made by the native indigenous people. But it is not all jade in the museum. Besides this the Costa Rica Jade Museum offers a nice collection of pre-Colombian artifacts, such as ceramics and golden miniatures. The Jade Museum also gives Costa Rican artists the opportunity to exhibit their work and during the years has build up a fine contemporary collection as well. It’s absolutely worthwhile to take the time to wander through the five thematic rooms of the Costa Rica Jade Museum. It will make you familiar with the origin, development and history of Costa Rica’s pre-Columbian ancestors. But there is something else that might surprise you in the Costa Rica Jade Museum. One of the unexpected features is it’s location of the Costa Rica Jade Museum on the 11th floor, which offers a spectacular view of San José and the surrounding mountains of the Central Valley. So when you are visiting San José, a visit to the Costa Rica Jade Museum is definitely a must.