The lapis lazuli protagonist at the Silver Museum

Precious, rare and beautiful, the lapis lazuli has always been a favourite among the artists for representing the sky and the sea in their artworks and the exhibition "Lapis lazuli, Magic of the Blue" at the Silver Museum in Florence is dedicated to those objects of art made with this incredible stone.
Mined since ancient times from the quarries of Sar-e-Sang in the mountains of Badakhshan (today Afghanistan), the lapis lazuli became a symbol of wealth, and whoever has seen the spectacular Isthar Door of Babilonia can imagine why this stone has always been so loved among the ancient populations.
The deep blue of the mineral with its veins of white and gold, is so intensely beautiful that can be almost hypnotizing.

The exhibition displays vases and cups made of lapis lazuli, originally created for the royal courts of the Renaissance.
The collection of these sophisticated and precious objects started by Cosimo I de Medici in the XIV century is unique in the world; many of the artefacts are from the museum’s own collection, but there are also contributions by museums like the Prado Museum in Madrid, the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, the Grünes Gewölbe in Dresden, and the Landesmuseum Württemberg in Stuttgart.
However this stone was not only used to create precious objects. The lapis lazuli can be grinded and tranformed into the ultramarine pigment, defined by Cennino Cennini as the "noble colour", which during the Renaissance was widely used in frescoes and oil paintings. The display also includes examples of these paintings.
The exhibition divided in four sections explains some of the scientific aspects of the rare stone thanks to the contribution of the Natural History Museum of the University of Florence, it shows the use of the lapis lazuli in the art of the Commesso Fiorentino and in the creation of precious objects, and finally focuses on the pigment so loved among the artists, including Yves Kline who dedicated his life's work to the use of the so-called "blue Kline".
An incredibly refined exhibition, for those who love blue and elegance.

Silver Museum, Pitti Palace
Open: 8.15 am – 6.30 pm
Closed on the first and last Monday of the month
Ticket: 10 euro, reduced 5 euro.