The original locality for lapis lazuli is the Sar-e-Sang deposit in Afghanistan's remote Badakhshan district. In the Achaemenid period, azure was called "Kabutkeh". In the Sassanid period, azure was consumed a lot. The roof of Ctesiphon, as well as various sculptures, is made of azure; it is possible that they used azurite instead of azure in making these works. 

Some silver compounds, such as nitrogen azide, amide, acetyl, oxalate, and silver (II) oxide ‎compounds, are highly explosive; they can explode on heating, impact, light, and sometimes ‎spontaneously. To prevent the formation of such compounds, ammonia and acetylene should be ‎kept away from silver equipment.‎

In 2010, US Pentagon officials, along with US geologists, uncovered approximately $ 1 trillion in untapped mineral reserves in Afghanistan. A Pentagon note says Afghanistan could become Saudi Arabia's lithium. Some believe that intact minerals are worth up to $ 3 trillion.