TTO 0158 Lapis Lazuli Caged Pendant 1960s Unique. Of course! 6000 years old, and now yours to have and hold. A generous piece of polished lapis in a custom made silver cage with a chain. Be at one with nature with this fine example of artisan jewellery. The cage measure 2" by 1", the total length of the chain is 24" Lapis lazuli (pronounced LAP-iss LAZ-yu-lye/) (sometimes abbreviated to lapis) is a relatively rare, semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense blue color. Lapis lazuli has been mined in the Badakhshan province of Afghanistan for over 6,000 years, and trade in the stone is ancient enough for lapis jewelry to have been found at Predynastic Egyptian sites (as archeologists have frequently stated, but lapis could also be found in, e.g. the Siwa Oasis in the Western Libyan desert), and lapis beads at neolithic burials in Mehrgarh, the Caucasus, and even as far from Afghanistan as Mauritania.