The Jade Gates marked the route beyond Qarth to Yi Ti and the isle of Leng. Corlys Velaryon and the Sea Snake were the first to pass through them, opening a farther-reaching course for Westerosi trade and exploration.

Setting and Route

Traders from Oldtown and the Arbor commonly sailed as far as Qarth in search of spices, silk, and other treasures. The Jade Gates lay beyond that established destination, on the route Corlys took onward to Yi Ti and Leng. The account identifies their importance through this passage but gives no further description of their physical setting.

Corlys’s Voyage

Corlys made the journey aboard the Sea Snake, a ship he had designed and built himself. His voyage carried him and his vessel beyond the limits reached by the traders who stopped at Qarth, making them the first Westerosi to pass through the gates to Yi Ti and Leng.

Significance

The voyage returned with such a rich load of silk and spice that it doubled House Velaryon’s wealth in a stroke. The Jade Gates thus stand in the account as the threshold of a consequential expansion: beyond Qarth lay routes whose rewards could transform the fortunes of a Westerosi house.