A blue more expensive than gold − ultramarine

From Stories in Colour by The National Gallery

May 26, 2026 · 52 min · Season 2 · Episode 2

About this episode

This episode explores the history and significance of ultramarine, featuring a discussion with writer Victoria Finlay about her research journey to Afghanistan.

Travel with us beyond the sea to look at ultramarine , a pigment that was once even more precious than gold. In this episode, writer Victoria Finlay joins Beks for a discussion on how researching ultramarine took her to Afghanistan. She journeyed to the blue mines where you can find lapis lazuli, the semi-precious stone ultramarine comes from. Along the journey, we pause to look at some of the National Gallery’s paintings – including one noteworthy for its lack of ultramarine... ------- Victoria has written several books about colour - including 'Colour, Travels through the Paintbox' and 'The Brilliant History of Color in Art' - which involved travelling across the globe to the very places that ancient pigments and dyes came from. Her most recent book is about the hidden histories of fabric. ------- Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lOs0_Yi-G8 You can email us with any questions via podcast@nationalgallery.org.uk Find out more about the podcast on our website: www.nationalgallery.org.uk/podcast ------- Paintings mentioned: English or French (?), ‘The Wilton Diptych’, About 1395-9…

People in this episode

Host: Beks

Guest: Victoria Finlay

Topics covered

ultramarine
pigments
lapis lazuli
art history
travel
color

Keywords

ultramarine
pigment
lapis lazuli
art
Victoria Finlay
National Gallery
color

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The National Gallery

Books & works: The Wilton Diptych, The Entombment (or Christ being carried to his Tomb), The Virgin and Prayer