Nothing quite stains like Cobalt Blue 

For when colouring indigo the choices are too few 

Maybe I could choose copper in a alkaline glaze 

But I'm after a deep navy not a turquoise haze!

Cobalt forms with silica to produce the deepest of blues 

Overabundant in a glaze it may clump into purple hues 

It has been a telling feature of porcelain pots of the ming dynasty 

And has lined walls of the Persian Mosques,temples displaying piety

Seeking its use we have been driven to dig deep within the Earth 

And so for its value, violence and exploitation has given birth 

A mineral mined today not just for its glamour 

But instead to sell as a commodity under an auctioneer's hammer

It has graced the ceiling of Shahs 

And glossed the Fabergé eggs of Russian Tsars

But today, it is used instead to replace the batteries of the IPhone XR’s

On the mining communities the price of Cobalt has long since been inflicted

A story of bleeding lungs and glistening jewellery that is the story that Cobalt has depicted.