A metal halide lamp is disclosed comprising an elongated discharge vessel, preferably made of a ceramic material, surrounded by an outer envelope and having a wall which encloses a discharge space containing an inert gas, such as xenon, and an ionizable filling, wherein at both ends in said discharge space an electrode is arranged between which a discharge arc can be maintained along a discharge path, wherein one end of the discharge vessel is mounted in a mounting base, said lamp comprising a band-shaped light-shielding strip extending laterally of the discharge path, and a lead-back conductor supplying current from the mounting base to the electrode at the other end of the discharge vessel, wherein, seen in cross section, the lead-back conductor is positioned within the sector defined by the two lines through the center of the discharge vessel and the edges of said strip. Also a metalhalide lamp is disclosed wherein the light-shielding strip is a conductive strip, and the antenna or the lead-back conductor is integrated with said strip. Furthermore a metal-halide lamp is disclosed wherein the lead-back wire is provided inside the wall of the outer envelope.