Lapis Lazuli
Lapis was highly valued by many civilisations. Lapis beads have been found at Neolithic burials in Mehrgarh, the Caucasus, and as far away from Afghanistan as Mauritania. It was used in the funeral mask of Tutankhamun (1341–1323 BCE).
By the end of the Middle Ages, lapis lazuli began to be exported to Europe. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance it was the most expensive pigment available (gold being second) and was often reserved for depicting the robes of Angels or the Virgin Mary. It was used by some of the most important artists of the Renaissance and Baroque, including Masaccio, Perugino, Titian and Vermeer, and was often reserved for the clothing of the central figures of their paintings, especially the Virgin Mary.
Lapis is the Latin word for “stone” and lazulī is the genitive form of the Medieval Latin lazulum, which is taken from the Arabic lāzaward, itself from the Persian lājevard, which is the name of the stone in Persian and also of a place where lapis lazuli was mined. “Lazulum” is etymologically related to the color blue and used as a root for the word for blue in several languages, including Spanish and Portuguese “azul”.
The most important mineral component of lapis lazuli is lazurite (25% to 40%), a feldspathoid silicate mineral with the formula (Na,Ca)8(AlSiO4)6(S,SO4,Cl)1-2
Most lapis lazuli also contains calcite (white), sodalite (blue), and pyrite (metallic yellow). Some samples of lapis lazuli contain augite, diopside, enstatite, mica, hauynite, hornblende, nosean and sulfur-rich löllingite geyerite.
Lapis lazuli may also be substituted by spinel or sodalite, or by dyed jasper or dyed howlite.
What is the difference between Sodalite and Lapis Lazuli ?
One of the differences between sodalite and lapis lazuli is that sodalite rarely contains any pyrite which will typically be in lapis. Another difference is sodalite is a different color of blue, royal blue to be exact, where lapis lazuli has an ultramarine color…
Sodalite and lapis lazuli do not have the same streak. The streak of sodalite is white, while the streak of lapis lazuli is light blue. Additionally, sodalite will be far more available than that of lapis lazuli. Sodalite has been given the nick name “poor man’s lapis” due to its greater abundance keeping it a cheaper alternative to lapis lazuli. Many will purchase the cheaper sodalite as they see the color as similar in both the minerals, and take the less expensive choice.
