The Ancient Blue That Inspired Leonardo, Michelangelo & Vermeer

For centuries, people have been captivated by the deep, heavenly blue of lapis lazuli. First mined thousands of years ago in the mountains of Afghanistan—and today found in the Andes of Chile—this remarkable stone has inspired artists and jewelers across civilizations. When ground into a fine powder, lapis becomes ultramarine, a pigment so beautiful and rare that it once cost more than gold.

During the Renaissance, only the most celebrated painters used it—and only for their most meaningful creations.

Leonardo da Vinci – The Virgin of the Rocks
Between 1483 and 1508, Leonardo painted two versions of The Virgin of the Rocks: one now in the Louvre Museum in Paris, and the other in the National Gallery of London. In this masterpiece, the Virgin Mary’s robe glows in a rich ultramarine blue made from lapis lazuli. Leonardo chose this color to symbolize purity, peace, and the divine. Using his signature sfumato technique, he softened the light and shadows until they seemed to breathe—a timeless harmony only lapis could reveal.

Michelangelo – The Last Judgment
A few decades later, Michelangelo covered the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City with The Last Judgment (1536–1541). Determined to capture heaven itself, he demanded the purest lapis lazuli pigment. He used it for the sky and for the Virgin Mary’s robe, making blue a symbol of faith and salvation. Through lapis, Michelangelo turned color into emotion—and belief into art.

Johannes Vermeer – Girl with a Pearl Earring
In the 1600s, Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer gave ultramarine a new kind of light. In his Girl with a Pearl Earring, now at the Mauritshuis Museum in The Hague, the girl’s blue turban glows softly with pigment made from ground lapis lazuli. Vermeer used this precious color not only for fabric but also within shadows and walls, giving his paintings an inner radiance. Even though he lived modestly, he spared no expense for lapis—proof of his devotion to beauty and light.

From the artists of the past to the artisans of today, lapis lazuli has always inspired beauty. At Lapis House, we carry that inspiration forward—creating jewelry that reflects the same enduring blue that has fascinated the world for generations.