Ultramarin(Ultr) is a deep blue color pigment originally made from the mineral lapis lazuli. It remained an extremely expensive pigment until a synthetic ultramarine was invented in 1826.
Before this time,the manufacture of ultramarine was a very laborious process. This process consisted of mixing the ground material with melted wax,resins,and oils,wrapping the resulting mass in a cloth,and then kneading it in a dilute lye solution.
It was imported into Europe from mines in Afghanistan by Italian traders during the 14th and 15th centuries.