Lapis lazuli is a beautiful and ancient crystal. Lapis lazuli also goes by lapis for short. Lapis lazuli has been around for thousands of years. It has been used for carvings, pigments, and jewelry. 

Lapis Lazuli is a powerful crystal that is associated with wisdom, intuition, and truth. It is known for its deep blue color and has a rich history that spans across various cultures and time periods. Lapis Lazuli has been used for its unique appearance, with powdered forms being used for blue paint and eyeshadows in Ancient Egypt.

Lapis Lazuli Properties 

Lapis lazuli is very different from other crystals and minerals because it isn’t just one mineral. It is a combo of a few minerals! It is mostly lazurite which gives it that rich, royal blue color.

If your lapis has gray or gold reflects in it, it is because it has pyrite in it! If your lapis has any white mixed in and if the look of it reminds you of denim, that means that the lapis formed near calcite. The white mixed in is a calcite deposit. This doesn’t make your lapis any less beautiful if it is mixed with calcite or pyrite.
It is all up to you and what you prefer! Nature always finds a way to create art and beauty. 

Since lapis can be mixed with calcite or pyrite, the Mohs level can range. If your lapis is made up of mostly lazurite, the Mohs level of hardness should be about 5. 

How Lapis Lazuli Stone Gets its Name

Lapis lazuli is pretty straightforward with how it gets its name. Lapis literally means stone in latin. Lazuli comes from a persian word that names blue. So the name literally means blue stone. How ingenious and clever! 

Lapis Lazuli Ancient Uses

Lapis lazuli has been around FOREVER. Lapis lazuli stones have always been popular with human civilizations. There are mines in Afghanistan that date back to 7000 BC. Lapis stones have been found in many stone age archaeological sites in Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan that date back to 3000 BC.

Lapis has been found in ancient Egypt too. These archaeological sites date back to 3000 BC too. Lapis lazuli stones were used for ancient carvings, jewelry, sculptures, amulets, and beads!

Of course you can’t forget about using lapis lazuli as a crushed pigment. Ancient Egyptians used lapis lazuli for cosmetic purposes and for painting. Lapis Lazuli has been used for its unique appearance, with powdered forms being used for blue paint and eyeshadows in Ancient Egypt. It has also been used to adorn burial sites for royalty, with King Tut's sarcophagus being decorated with Lapis Lazuli stones. They used lapis to create sculptures to honor their gods like Osiris, Ra, and Horus. Lapis lazuli was used to honor the dead during funerals as well as for worshipping the gods. Lapis was used for many religious properties.

In the bible, Moses is given laws of man from God. The story goes that these laws of man were written on giant slabs of lapis lazuli.
Another story from the bible includes Aaron, who was appointed as a high priest by Moses. Aaron was instructed to wear a breastplate made from 12 stones. Lapis lazuli was the 5th stone used to create the breastplate.

Lapis lazuli was also important in Buddhist culture and history. 

We’ve Got a Blue Crush on Lapis Lazuli Crystals

Lapis lazuli has been an extremely popular pigment for 100s, even 1000s of years. Back in the day, practices would include removing any of the white calcite or “impurities” so that they could create a rich, blue color. The pigment they would create from the crushed lapis would be called “Ultramarine Blue.”

This technique was very popular in the Renaissance ages and was used for many paintings. Any painting where the ultramarine blue pigment was used was considered expensive! Only the wealthy class and high ranked artists were able to afford and use this high quality pigment.
Now, synthetic ultramarine pigments are created and used. It is very rare for true ultramarine pigments to be created from lapis. Why? Because it costs a lot of money, honey!
But, some modern artists do like to use the true ultramarine  to try to emulate painting styles that were used in the renaissance times.

Do these paintings look familiar to you?

These are some very famous paintings where the artists used ultramarine blue pigments to create with!
Vincent Van Gogh created “Starry Night” in 1889. It is an extremely popular painting and very well recognized. The blue sky in “Starry Night” is created from ultramarine pigment from lapis lazuli! 

Another popular and well known painting is “Girl with a Pearl Earring” created by Johannes Vermeer in 1665. This painting is highly recognizable. If you notice in the painting, she is wearing a blue scarf on her head. The blue scarf was created from ultramarine pigment.

These are just two examples of ultramarine pigment being used in popular historical paintings. Next time you see a blue sky, water, or clothing painted in a renaissance artwork, it will definitely make you think twice! Is that lapis?

Lapis Lazuli Properties

Lapis lazuli is used for many reasons. It can help with stress and encourages peace. It is a great stone to have around if you need a bit of serenity and peace. Lapis is a very protective stone too. It is also used to protect your energy especially if someone is trying to send you some bad vibes (evil eye).
If someone is sending you the evil eye, lapis blocks the attack and sends the energy back to its source.

Lapis Lazuli is closely connected to the third eye chakra, which is the center of intuition and inner wisdom. By opening this chakra, Lapis Lazuli allows individuals to deepen their connection to themselves and uncover their true selves. 

Lapis Lazuli is particularly beneficial for those going through major life changes or decisions, as it helps them trust their own judgment and live life on their own terms. Another important meaning of Lapis Lazuli is tapping into one's inner wisdom. The crystal enhances intuition and expands mental awareness, allowing individuals to access their own knowledge and power. It opens the mind to knowledge and wisdom, elevating mental capacity and helping individuals make more informed decisions. The energy of Lapis Lazuli helps individuals trust themselves and their own advice.

Where to Place Lapis Lazuli Stones in the Home

Lapis lazuli is a great crystal for feng shui. Place lapis lazuli in your home to encourage good feng shui. Since lapis lazuli is a protective crystal, it is a wonderful stone to have in your home. Lapis lazuli encourages honesty and compassion which make it a great stone to have in your home. Place it in your bedroom, living area, or wherever you see fit!

How Lapis Stones Can Help

Use lapis to help you with your dream work. Lapis lazuli helps you with your personal power. It encourages you to take charge of your life.
It is your life after all.
It helps you to speak your truth and become more self aware. Lapis lazuli helps you to express yourself without holding back, compromising, or being afraid of being judged. Lapis lazuli stone can help with repressed anger.

Lapis Lazuli Chakra Healing 

Lapis lazuli is a blue stone. Like other blue stones, lapis is great for the throat chakra. Lapis helps to balance the throat chakra. It is also great for opening the third eye. Blast your third eye open with lapis. It helps with spiritual work, enlightenment, and psychic abilities. 

How to Use Lapis Lazuli Stones

Since lapis lazuli is a great throat chakra healer and a third eye chakra healer, it is a great stone to be worn as jewelry. Wear a lapis lazuli necklace or lapis lazuli pendant so that it is at your throat to help with your throat chakra. Or a piece where the lapis can be placed on your third eye.
Have you tried meditating with a crystal on your third eye? This could be a great opportunity to place your lapis lazuli on your third eye! Try it out!

To fully benefit from the Lapis Lazuli crystal, it is recommended to try wearing the crystal, carrying it with you, and placing it in your environment. Wearing Lapis Lazuli jewelry keeps its energy close to you throughout the day and serves as a reminder to be true to yourself. Carrying a piece of Lapis Lazuli allows individuals to connect with its energy whenever they need guidance. Placing Lapis Lazuli in your environment, such as on your desk or in a prominent place, ensures a constant reminder to stay true to yourself and your desires.

Important things to know about it your lapis lazuli stones

Remember, that lapis lazuli is low on the moh’s scale. This means that it is a softer stone. Other stones that are higher on the moh’s scale could scratch it. So please take care of your crystals.

The sun is so powerful. Lapis lazuli should stay out of direct sunlight since the beautiful blue ultramarine color may fade with direct, constant sunlight. You can still charge your crystals outside, but it isn’t one you could leave outside for too long because it will fade.
Lapis lazuli is very porous, so it should not get wet or stay wet. Try to keep your lapis in a cool, dry place when storing it. It should also not come in contact with any chemicals. It is a great practice to put on your lapis jewelry, after you have gotten ready, done your makeup, styled your hair, etc. Since it is a porous stone, you do not want it to soak in any of those chemicals/products.

This is one stone that you can energy cleanse with salt. To cleanse lapis lazui, you can use the power of the moon, smoke, or other crystals.

Lapis Lazuli & the Goddesses (and Gods)

Lapis lazuli has many ancient goddess associations. There are many myths where lapis lazuli is mentioned.
One of these myths is for the Summerian goddess of love, Inanna. Her story mentions her entering the underworld wearing a lapis lazuli necklace. This myth dates back to 4000 BC.
The Egyptian goddess, Hathor, was known as the Lady of Lapis Lazuli. Hathor is a goddess of love, beauty, and many other things! Ancient Egyptians loved lapis lazuli. It was one of their favorite stones to honor the gods. They also honored Nuit with lapis lazuli. Nuit is the goddess of the heavens. Maat was also honored with lapis lazuli. Maat is the goddess of truth and beauty. Myths said that the Egyptian God of the sun, Ra, even had lapis lazuli hair!

Isis was also honored with lapis lazuli. Isis is a goddess of the heavens for ancient egypt. Lapis lazuli was considered a stone of the heavens.
Lapis lazuli also honors Athena, the Greek Goddess of war and wisdom. Hera is another goddess that is associated with lapis lazuli. Hera is the Greek Goddess of marriage.

Lapis Lazuli Affirmation

I see clearly through my third eye. My intuition as it guides me.