Ultramarine
Ultramarine was the Renaissance's most precious pigment—more expensive than gold. This deep celestial blue was ground from Afghan lapis lazuli, traveling the Silk Road to Italy. Renaissance painters reserved ultramarine for the Virgin Mary's robes—symbolizing heaven and purity. Michelangelo couldn't afford it and left "The Entombment" unfinished. Contracts had "ultramarine clauses"—clients paid separately for the pigment. Only after 1828, when synthetic ultramarine was invented, did this "blue of heaven" become accessible.
Ground and purified from Afghan lapis lazuli, the most expensive pigment of the Renaissance.
Ultramarine symbolizes divinity, heaven, and eternity. The exclusive color of the Virgin Mary.
Ultramarine use dates to 6th-century Afghan murals, peaking in Renaissance Italy.
Blu più bello del mondo.