SEM-EDX and SEM-CL to Characterize Lapis Lazuli from Different Provenances

Lapis lazuli has been used for more than 7000 years for the manufacture of precious objects and jewels. The main quarries for this stone are still active in Afghanistan, but there are other quarries that could have been exploited since antiquity in the Pamir mountains (Tajikistan), in Pakistan and in Siberia. For this reason a provenance study of lapis lazuli could provide answers to some important issues, in particular the use and the dissemination of this rock through historic commercial routes. In the present work a systematic study has been performed on lapis lazuli from different quarries using Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and cathodoluminescence (CL). The aim of this characterization is to identify the main phases present in the stone and to find some markers to distinguish among provenances.