As the world’s widest known blue precious stone in it’s powdered form was the favourite eyeshadow of Cleopatra. In ancient Egypt frequently used as fave stone for amulets and scarabs, in Mesopotamia and Babylonia often used for seals and jewelry. It has also been used in the Taj Mahal in India. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the oldest known story in human history, it is referenced several times. In a form of jewelry has been found at excavations of the Predynastic Egyptian site Naqada (3300–3100 BC). In ancient Mesopotamia many notable artifacts having been excavated at the 25th-century BC Statue of Ebih-Il, discovered in ancient Mari in Syria, uses inlays that were imported from as far east as Afghanistan.
This mystical stone is the Lapis lazuli, a relatively rare semi-precious stone. In ancient times, lapis lazuli was known as sapphire, which is the name that is used today for the blue corundum variety sapphire
Lapis is the Latin word for “stone” and lazuli is the genitive form of the Medieval Latin lazulum, which is taken from the Arabic لازوردlāzaward, itself from the Persian لاژورد lāžaward, the name of a place where lapis lazuli was mined. Taken as a whole, lapis lazuli means “stone of Lāzhward”.
The name of the place came to be associated with the stone mined there and, eventually, with its color. The French azur, the Italian azzurro, the Polish lazur, Romanian azur and azuriu, and the Portuguese and Spanish azul, Hungarian azúr are cognates. (source: Wikipedia)
Sapphire pendant in a 14K white gold setting and 14K white gold ring with sapphire and diamond inlays: Haes Jewellery
Due to some explanations Azure is a word for:
1. the clear, cloudless sky.
2. the heraldic color blue.
3. color of the Mediterranean Sea.
3. a semiprecious gemstone.
Girl with a pearl Earring. The painter Jan Vermeer van Delft used expensive ground lapis lazuli for coloring the blue headscarf.
Azure can be so much more: it’s widely involved in today’s main fashion and jewelry trends.
Sapphire FED as seen left on the D&G and right on the Ellie Saab 2013 Runways, in the middle: the gracious Jessica Chastain wearing a structured dress of Roland Mouret.
Another Azure model: Bentley The “T” is a higher performance version of the Bentley Azure. The exterior styling was inspired from Bentley Mark VI.
Great watches of the blue trend: Rolex Submariner gold-steel-blue-dial and Tag Heuer Monaco AKA Steeve McQueen. Both are available at Haes Jewellery.