Lapis Lazuli

Lapis Lazuli, or lapis for short, is an incredible stone with a past that spans at least the last 6 500 years of human history.

Unlike most of the gemstones used by Malki Studio, lapis is not a mineral but a metamorphic rock with a famously rich and intense blue colour often dotted with golden pyrite flakes.

During the Renaissance, lapis was ground to powder in order to make the famously expensive pigment Ultramarine.

However, the use of lapis goes back much further in history than Renaissance Europe, including in Ancient Greece, Neolithic Afghan/Indus Valley trade routes, Mesopotamia, and Ancient Egypt.

The deep blue colour of lapis connects Malki artists to the past but also to the present.

We greatly value lapis for its embeddedness in the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cultures that are a part of our heritage.

At the same time, the saturated hues of lapis is reminiscent of the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean, which we are lucky to live next to in Bargara, Queensland.