Sodalite is a massive blue silicate mineral that is commonly fashioned into cabochons, inlays or carvings. It is a minor constituent within the more valuable lapis lazuli, and the names of the two materials are sometimes used interchangeably by less scrupulous dealers. However, “poor man’s lapis” can be identified by its darker royal blue hue, white veining and incipient cleavage cracks in six directions, as well as lacking the brassy pyrite inclusions commonly associated with real lapis lazuli.

Unlike lapis, sodalite was not known to the ancient world and was only identified in 1811 from deposits in Greenland. However, the material was not commercially exploited until eighty years later, when a significantly larger source was discovered in Canada.

Hackmanite is a pinkish variety of sodalite that quickly fades to white. However, material from some localities will subsequently regain its color in sunlight.