This opaque, deep blue gemstone, which was referred to as 'ultramarine' (from beyond the sea), has a grand past. It was among the first gemstone to be worn as jewelry and crafted into sculptures. At excavations sites around the Mediterranean, archaeologists have found inside graves decorative chains and figures made of lapis lazuli. The deep blue stone was very popular thousands of years ago among the people of Mesopotamia, Persia, Rome, Egypt and Greece.

Lapis lazuli is an opaque rock that mainly consists of diopside and lazurite. It came into being millions of years ago during the metamorphosis of lime to marble. Uncut, lapis lazuli is matt and of a deep, dark blue color, often with golden inclusions and white marble veins. The small inclusions with their golden shimmer, which give the stone the magic of a starry sky, are not of gold as people used to think, but of pyrite, calcite and iron.

Just like 5000 years ago, the best rough stones still come from the steep Hindu Kush in the north-east of Afghanistan. The lumps of blue rock, extracted from the inhospitable mountains, are brought down into the valley in the summer months by mules. Deposits in Russia, to the west of Lake Baikal, and in the Chilean Andes were discovered later on. In smaller amounts, lapis lazuli is also found in Italy, Mongolia, the USA and Canada, Myanmar and Pakistan, but in really good qualities it is rare all over. The prices of jewelry mounting with lapis lazuli vary very widely, from luxurious to quite inexpensive. The prices of this gemstone are largely dependent on the beauty and intensity of the color.

There are various treatments that are carried out on this gemstone. These are dying, waxing oiling and plastic impregnation that gives it a polished look. Out of these, dying is the most common treatment. Since the practice of treating a lapis lazuli to get the deep blue natural hue is fairly common, it is always advisable to get the gem tested from a gemological laboratory before actually making a purchase if you are unsure about the seller.