Editing Lapis lazuli (section)

===Sources===
Lapis lazuli is found in limestone in the [[Kokcha River]] valley of [[Badakhshan]] province in north-eastern Afghanistan, where the [[Sar-i Sang]] mine deposits have been worked for more than 6,000 years.<ref name="Oldershaw-2003">{{Harvcolnb|Oldershaw|2003}}</ref> Afghanistan was the source of lapis for the ancient Persian, Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations, as well as the later Greeks and Romans. Ancient Egyptians obtained the material through trade with Mesopotamians, as part of [[Egypt–Mesopotamia relations]] and from ancient [[Ethiopia]] . During the height of the [[Indus Valley civilisation]], approximately 2000 BC, the Harappan colony, now known as [[Shortugai]], was established near the lapis mines.<ref name=bc1995/>

In addition to the Afghan deposits, lapis is also extracted in the [[Andes]] (near [[Ovalle, Chile|Ovalle]], [[Chile]]); and to the west of [[Lake Baikal]] in Siberia, Russia, at the Tultui lazurite deposit. It is mined in smaller amounts in [[Angola]], Argentina, [[Burma]], [[Ethiopia]], Pakistan, Canada, Italy, India, and in the United States in [[California]] and [[Colorado]].<ref name="ICGA"/>