Opulent Hover Ultramarine

Latin opulentus, rich / wealthy — derived from ops (wealth). As a color modifier, opulent implies a saturated-and-luxurious quality, the deep-rich color of Belle-Époque and Gilded-Age interior-decoration silk-and-velvet textiles. Sits at the bold-and-saturated end of the grid, parallel to lavish and sumptuous.

Middle English hoveren, to-remain-suspended. As a color modifier, hover implies a suspended-and-floating-and-hesitant quality, the visual register of kestrel-and-hummingbird-hover hand-suspended-and-floating-and-hesitant kestrel-and-hummingbird-and-dragonfly hovered-and-suspended-and-floating-and-hesitant surfaces under kestrel-and-hummingbird-and-dragonfly heat-shimmer-and-summer-meadow-and-cliff-edge mid-air-light. Sits at the modifier-and-mood end of the grid, parallel to float and flit in usage.

The pigment ground from lapis lazuli — the Afghan mineral imported through Venice in the late Middle Ages, more expensive by weight than gold during the Renaissance. The color refers to a freshly mixed ultramarine pigment in linseed oil: a saturated, slightly violet-shifted deep blue with the matte finish of micron-ground rock. Deeper than cobalt, cooler than royal, with the art-historical weight of the blue Vermeer reserved for Mary's robe.