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The Mineral Lazulite

Chemistry: (Mg, Fe)Al2(PO4)2(OH)2,
Class: Phosphates
Color: is dark azure-blue to sky blue.
Luster: is vitreous to dull.
Transparency: translucent to transparent.
Crystal: System: Monoclinic
Cleavage: is distinct in one direction.
Fracture: is uneven.
Hardness: is 5.5 - 6.
Specific Gravity: apx. 3.1
Streak: is pale blue to white.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Lazulite is a phosphate-based mineral containing magnesium, iron, and aluminum phosphate. Formed at relatively low temperatures, the dark blue mineral is among the most valuable of semiprecious gemstones. It can be confused with lazurite , lapis or azurite. The beautiful
azure-blue color that is seen in all three of these minerals makes them very desirable as ornamental stones and rare mineral specimens

Crystals are more common than massive forms. The crystal forms include a dipyramidal form that comes close to looking like a distorted octahedron, usually flattened to the point of being
a tabular crystal. Also small granular forms. Most crystals are dull. But some exceptional specimens can be quite spectacular. Associated Minerals are quartz, rutile, kyanite,
andalusite, garnets, muscovite, corundum, wardite, brazilianite and siderite.

Lazulite is in a solid solution series with the mineral scorzalite. A solid solution series is a set
of two or more minerals that have a couple of elements that substitute freely for each other. The lazulite-scorzalite series ranges from the magnesium rich Lazulite to the iron rich scorzalite. The rarer scorzalite does not differ appreciably, except that it tends to be darker, less transparent and denser than Lazulite.

LOCALITIES:
Western Austria; Zermatt, Switzerland; Minas Gerias, Brazil; Lincoln Co., Georgia; Inyo Co., California and Yukon Territory, Canada. We have some nice specimens from Rapid Creek Yukon, Canada. Afghanistan is noted for having facet grade material.

Rapid Creek produces some of the finest lazulites ever found. These Lazulite specimens may have combinations of associated minerals including siderite, apatite, quartz and brazilianite.
No new Lazulite specimens from this locality have been collected for the past few years.

USES:
Lazulite is most often used as ornamental stones and rare mineral specimens. Lazulite is not particularly abundant, especially in cuttable pieces. Fine quality pieces are rare, especially in sizes over a few carats. It can produce vivid, deep blue gems when found in suitable pieces. Clear gemmy crystals show strong pleochroism from yellowish to clear to blue.

HISTORY & FACTS:
Al Kulan was the prospector who discovered Canada's Faro ore body. He also discovered the gemstone Lazulite near the Blow River. A few years later, in 1975, Kulan presented several specimens of Lazulite to Yukon Commissioner James Smith. Smith knew that Lazulite was the only semiprecious gemstone of any size in the Yukon. On February 16, 1976, he proclaimed it the Yukon’s official gemstone. The first jewelry made from Yukon Lazulite was given to Madame Vanier, wife of the governor general. The name Lazulite comes from the Arabic
word, lazu, which means “heaven.” According to an old legend, Lazulite was born out of a
giant upheaval of the universe when pieces of sky and sunlight were captured and held by Mother Earth.

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