Lapis lazuli (UK: /ˌlæpɪs ˈlæz(j)ʊli, ˈlæʒʊ-, -ˌli/; US: /ˈlæz(j)əli, ˈlæʒə-, -ˌli/), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. Originating from the Persian word for the gem, lāžward,^[1] lapis lazuli is a rock composed primarily of the minerals lazurite, pyrite and calcite. As early as the 7th millennium BC, lapis lazuli was mined in the Sar-i Sang mines,^[2] in Shortugai, and in other mines in Badakhshan province in modern northeast Afghanistan.^[3] Lapis lazuli artifacts, dated to 7570 BC, have been found at Bhirrana, which is the oldest site of Indus Valley civilisation.^[4] Lapis was highly valued by the Indus Valley Civilisation (3300–1900 BC).^[4][5][6] Lapis beads have been found at Neolithic burials in Mehrgarh, the Caucasus, and as far away as Mauritania.^[7] It was used in the funeral mask of Tutankhamun (1341–1323 BC).^[8]

By the end of the Middle Ages, lapis lazuli began to be exported to Europe, where it was ground into powder and made into the pigment, ultramarine. Ultramarine 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. Ultramarine has also been found in dental tartar of medieval nuns and scribes, perhaps as a result of licking their painting brushes while producing medieval texts and manuscripts.^[9]

Mines in northeast Afghanistan continue to be a major source of lapis lazuli. Important amounts are also produced from mines west of Lake Baikal in Russia, and in the Andes mountains in Chile which is the source that the Inca used to carve artifacts and jewelry. Smaller quantities are mined in Pakistan, Italy, Mongolia, the United States, and Canada.^[10]