Lapis Lazuli, Wien, Austria
N 48° 12.505 E 016° 21.852
33U E 601351 N 5340365
Lapis Lazuli, Wien, Austria
Waymark Code: WMDPD1
Location: Wien, Austria
Date Posted: 02/10/2012
Views: 80
Lapis lazuli is a relatively rare, semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense blue color. Lapis lazuli is a rock, it is formed from minerals. The main component of lapis lazuli is lazurite (25% to 40%), a feldspathoid silicate mineral composed of sodium, aluminium, silicon, oxygen, sulfur, and chloride. Most lapis lazuli also contain calcite (white), sodalite (blue) and pyrite (metallic yellow). Other possible constituents are augite, diopside, enstatite, mica, hauynite, hornblende and nosean. Some contain trace amounts of the sulfur rich lollingite variety geyerite. Lapis lazuli usually occurs in crystalline marble as a result of contact metamorphism.
The finest color is intense blue, lightly dusted with small flecks of golden pyrite. Stones with no white calcite veins and only small pyrite inclusions are more prized. Patches of pyrite are an important help in identifying the stone as genuine and do not detract from its value.
At the given coordinates you will find the largest lapis lazuli monolith ever mined. This was in 1993 by an Austrian quarry specialist in the Chilean Andes at an altitude of app. 3700 meters. The monolith had a gross weight of 18.3 tons.
The famous Austrian sculptor Hans Muhr created a fountain out of that monolith – the “Waterwave-Life-Fountain”, first displayed at the World's Fair in 1998. Since Nov. 23, 2000 it is located in the Vienna City Center.
Type of Display: Geological
|
Visit Instructions:
When posting a visit, please provide at least one photo - including yourself in one of of the photos, your GPSr, or a photo different than the default photo.
Also, please provide your impression of the specimen or display.