Sodalite

Sodalite a tectosilicate mineral with royal blue varieties widely used as an ornamental gemstone. Although massive samples are opaque, crystals are usually transparent to translucent.

The people of the Caral culture traded for sodalite from the Collao altiplano. First discovered by Europeans in 1811 in the Ilimaussaq intrusive complex in Greenland, this mineral did not become widely important as an ornamental stone until 1891 when vast deposits of fine material discovered in Ontario, Canada.

A light, relatively hard yet fragile mineral, sodalite named after its sodium content. Well known for its blue color, it may also be grey, yellow, green, or pink and often mottled with white veins or patches. The more uniformly blue material used in jewellery, where fashioned into cabochons and beads. Lesser material more often seen as facing or inlay in various applications.