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Made from lapis lazuli — a semiprecious stone sourced from a remote river valley in Afghanistan — ultramarine was outrageously expensive, so most artists reserved the color for special occasions, such as painting the ceiling of the Scrovegni and Sistine chapels.

Plus, the brand’s handcrafted bronze and semiprecious stone burners make using it feel ceremonial in a way that lighting a candle simply does not.

In Maria’s time, the best blue paint powder was made from ground lapis lazuli, a semiprecious stone, which produced a beautiful clear blue but was also very expensive.

The Babylonians and Egyptians used bits of lapis lazuli, a blue semiprecious stone, in statuary and art, but the laborious process needed to turn it into the pigment ultramarine was only discovered in the sixth century B.C.E.

Gutfeld said the cave contained ancient arrowheads, flint knives and a seal made from a carved semiprecious stone called carnelian.