Lapis Lazuli

The finest lapis lazuli is an opaque stone of a deep blue color. Paler tints are also common, and some stones contain glistening spangles of iron pyrites. Lapis has a variable composition and is really a mixture of differ¬ent rock-forming minerals, hauynite, lazurite, sodalite, and others; occa¬sionally the golden iron pyrites may also be present. The chief source of the best lapis lazuli is in the Badakhshan area of Afghanistan. Inferior material is also found at Lake Baikal in Siberia and in Chile.