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Carrara : a nomination for ‘Global Heritage Stone Resource’ from

P. PRIMAVORI Dimension Stone International Consultant; Teacher in the Master ‘Architecture and Construction: contemporary design with natural stone’, Department of Architecture & Urban Studies, Politecnico of , Italy (e-mail: [email protected])

Abstract: Marble, from Italy, probably one of the most famous dimension stones in the collective memory and in ordinary people, is here nominated as a suitable ‘Global Heritage Stone Resource’. Quarried since pre-Roman times, the is the testimonial of an area/industry that was able – for a variety of reasons not easily repeatable in future stone history – from the dawn of the stone sector, to trigger a flywheel effect on a global scale. Suitable for any environment and cultural context, this versatile marble has been appreciated in almost any field of application – from building to architecture, from fine arts to urban landscape, from funerary art to modern 3D design – probably reaching its highest point in the eternal works of famous sculpturers, artists and architects such as , Donatello, Jacopo Della Quercia, Canova, Bernini, and many others. It is currently excavated in more than 100 , processed almost everywhere and sold all over the world.

Carrara Marble takes its name from the Italian erroneously used for a long time to define a multi- of Carrara where it has been quarried for more tude of different (more than one hundred than 2000 years and is still being quarried to this commercial varieties) extracted in the whole Apuan day at a rate of about 1 500 000 tons per year. It Alps region. Such misleading usage, substantially was during Roman times that the marble started to justified by the long history of all the marbles pro- be extracted in great quantities as it became the duced in the region and by their com- material of choice for public buildings across the mercial impact, can generate misunderstandings, Roman Empire. since it is often believed to define a single commer- We are not far from the truth if we state that in cial variety. the collective memory, in ordinary people or in any It would therefore be more correct to deal with technical office not devoted expressly to stone, Apuan Alps marbles, the most famous of which is marble is automatically associated with the word the Carrara Marble sensu stricto. Carrara. Indisputably, for decades and decades, there has been this word association: marble means Formal name for this proposed ‘global Carrara and Carrara means marble. In few other heritage stone resource’ commodity sectors is a word so automatically asso- ciated with a name, engendering an identification ‘Carrara Marble’. process that, despite the inexorable onslaught of glo- balization, continues to exist. Origin of name The Carrara district is an area/industry that was able – for a variety of reasons not easily repeatable The name ‘Carrara Marble’ takes its origin from in future stone history – from the dawn of the stone Carrara, a small town located at the foot of the sector to trigger a flywheel effect on a global scale. Apuan Alps, province, Northwest The district is part of a wider territory – the Apuan region, Italy. Alps region, northwestern Tuscany, Italy – where five important extraction areas for marble produc- Geological name tion can be recognized; area, area, Versilia area, Massa area and the Carrara area Marbles and dolomitic marbles (the ‘Carrara sensu stricto. This region is approximately 30 km Marbles’). long and 12 km wide with marble outcrops useful 2 for commercial purposes covering over 75 km . Other names The term Carrara Marble, geographically refer- ring to the marbles extracted in the surroundings In local usage the term ‘Apuan Alps marbles’ indi- of the town of Carrara, is in reality a general one, cates all the marble formations cropping out in the

From:Pereira, D., Marker, B. R., Kramar, S., Cooper,B.J.&Schouenborg, B. E. (eds) 2015. Global Heritage Stone: Towards International Recognition of Building and Ornamental Stones. Geological Society, , Special Publications, 407, 137–154. First published online February 23, 2015, http://dx.doi.org/10.1144/SP407.21 # 2015 The Author(s). Published by The Geological Society of London. All rights reserved. For permissions: http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/permissions. Publishing disclaimer: www.geolsoc.org.uk/pub_ethics Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

138 P. PRIMAVORI whole Apuan Alps area while ‘Carrara marble’ characteristics of a very restricted area or just one stands for the Liassic marbles mainly located in , or even one limited period of time. The the northwestern Apuan Alps area in the surround- most relevant characteristics of the seven main ings of the town of Carrara. varieties are summarized below.

(1) ‘Marmo Bianco Carrara (White Carrara Commercial designations marble): ‘White Carrara’(Fig. 1a) is one of Contrary to what might be thought to be the the classical Carrara marbles. It is a fine- to so-called Carrara Marble, which is often identified mid-coarse-grained marble, more or less merely as white marble or as the very famous Statu- homogeneously pearl-white coloured or with ary by the non-experts in the field, Carrara Marble tiny grey spots and thin, short veins irregularly comprises a wide variety of types of marble with distributed. Its dominant characteristic is that different chromatic and structural characteristics. it contains only a very limited number of im- Quantitatively and industrially most important, the purities in the form of micro-cryptocrystalline Marble sensu stricto formation offers some com- pyrite. The three main varieties of White Car- mercial types that are clearly defined for the entire rara are classed according to the colour of the extension of this formation all over the Apuan groundmass and are known as C, C/D and Alps. Such commercial types are seven, and are D. The C variety has a very light groundmass the following: with an even vein pattern that is not very marked. C/D varieties have a regular ground- (1) ‘Marmo Bianco Carrara’ (White Carrara mass but not as white as the C variety, whereas marble); the D variety also has a regular pattern but a (2) ‘Marmo Venato’ (Veined marble); darker, white-greyish groundmass. (3) ‘Marmo Bardiglio’ (Bardiglio marble); In many places, these varieties are almost (4) ‘Marmo Nuvolato’ (Cloud-like marble); identical (with respect to colour and decora- (5) ‘Marmo Arabescato’ (Arabesque-like marble); tion) to the ‘Marmo Venato’ (see 2 below), (6) ‘Marmo Statuario’/‘Statuario Venato’ (Statu- hence it is often difficult to draw a valid ary marble/Veined statuary); boundary in-between. One particular variety (7) ‘Marmo Calacata’ (Calacata marble). is Bianco P, quarried in the Massa basin These can be subdivided into many other types (see Principal Location of Quarries). This is due to slight chromatic variations, which are often a very sought-after material due to its

Fig. 1. The main commercial varieties of the Apuan Alps marble. Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 139

compactness and homogeneous, veinless and medium-grained grey marble crossed by almost completely white colour. numerous, more or less marked, light grey to Traditionally White Carrara is cut against whitish veins and irregular strips. This vari- the grain (the hard way) or, less frequently, ety often includes more homogeneous grey with the grain (the easy way). It is quarried bodies or metabreccia lenses, respectively in all the Carrara basins except Pescina- resembling the ‘Bardiglio’ and ‘Arabescato’ Boccanaglia (see Principal Location of Quar- types (see 5 below). ries). In the other Apuan quarry sites, white (5) ‘Marmo Arabescato’ (Arabesque-like mar- marble with similar characteristics to White ble): These are meta-breccias (Fig. 1e) with Carrara tends to be called by local names, predominant clasts and boulders of white-to- often corresponding to the place where it is grey marbles in a minor, more or less dark quarried. grey carbonate matrix; the fragments mainly (2) ‘Marmo Venato’ (Veined marble): This is a derive from White Carrara, Veined and mid-grained, pearl-white to light grey marble ‘Nuvolato/Bardiglio’ types. An appreciated (Fig. 1b) with a fairly regular network of sub-variety is the ‘Marmo Brouille´,’ quarried more or less dark grey veins (centimetre to mainly in the basin (see Principal millimetre in width). On the whole, this vari- Location of Quarries), is characterized by ety comprises many sub types whose aspect well-marked grey matrix in veins thicker and and structure range from an unreworked meta- more persistent than in the normal ‘Arabes- breccia to almost regular compositional alter- cati.’ The name of this family comes from nations. Like White Carrara, this variety can the geometric patterns typical of Islamic art. be classed either as C, C/D or D. Some types Traditionally this variety is mainly cut come from the Carrara area sensu stricto (see against the grain (the hard way), or parallel Principal Location of Quarries) mainly from to the grain (the easy way), so as to highlight Gioia basin, while other varieties are quarried the material’s decorative qualities. in the areas of Massa, and Minuc- It is quarried mostly in the Versilia area but ciano (see Principal Location of Quarries). It is also found in the Garfagnana and Massa is one of the most common varieties through- areas and to a lesser extent in the Carrara out the Apuan Alps. area (see Principal Location of Quarries). Traditionally Venato materials are cut (6) ‘Marmo Statuario’/‘Statuario Venato’ against the grain (the hard way) or perpen- (Statuary marble/Veined Statuary): This dicular to the grain (the easy way) depending is very pure coarse-grained marble (Fig. 1f), on the desired decorative effect. ivory-white to very light yellow-cream col- (3) ‘Marmo Bardiglio’ (Bardiglio marble): This oured that normally has no veins or some fine-grained marble (Fig. 1c) is characterized very shaded ones. It has been used for sculpt- by a grey colour due to abundant microcrys- ing since Roman times because of its ivory talline pyrite. Several, usually dark grey to ‘warm’ colour and its particular crystalline blackish veins are frequent, locally forming texture that naturally lends itself to chiselling a sub variety known as veined ‘Bardiglio’; work. Where some accessory minerals form dolomitic levels may be present as well. The widespread, anastomosed thin veins, the vein name of this family comes from a deriva- pattern is more frequent and evident, and the tion of the Spanish word ‘pardo’, which is material is called Statuario Venato. the colour dark grey, which also refers to a Statuario marble, together with Calacata cloudy sky. Marble (see 7 below) is among the most The Bardiglio family is one of the most renowned and precious of the entire Apuan typical of the Apuan Alps and is characterized region. Production is concentrated in the Car- by a very compact structure with the peculiar rara basins of Torano and (see Prin- fairly even dark grey colour of the ground- cipal Location of Quarries). Traditionally the mass. The Imperial variety, typical of Gar- material is cut against the grain (the hard fagnana (see Principal Location of Quarries), way). has an even grey-blue groundmass with no (7) ‘Marmo Calacata’ (Calacata marble): The marked veins. Traditionally Bardiglio is name (Fig. 1g) derives from the locality Cala- mainly cut against the grain (the hard way) cata north of Torano village in the Pescina- or parallel to the grain (the easy way). Bardi- Boccanaglia basin (see Principal Location glio varieties are found to a varying extent in of Quarries) where this variety is mostly all the quarry sites throughout the Apuan Alps. exploited. It is a meta-breccia with very light (4) ‘Marmo Nuvolato’(Cloud-like marble): white-yellowish marble clasts and, rarely, Marmo Nuvolato (Fig. 1d) is a fine- to light greenish and yellow-ochreous veins. Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

140 P. PRIMAVORI

A highly precious sub-variety is the so-called Area of occurrence ‘Calacata Macchia Oro’(Goldspotted Cala- cata). Carrara Marble and all the related commercial Traditionally the material is cut against the varieties occur within the Apuan Alps region, north- grain (the hard way). western Tuscany, Italy (Fig. 2). This region is approximately 30 km long and 12 km wide with In addition to these seven main commercial marble outcrops useful for commercial purposes types, at least two more varieties should be men- covering over 75 km2. tioned: Marmo ‘Paonazzo’ (Purple-Violet Mar- ble) and Marmo ‘Zebrino’ (Striped Marble). The Marmo ‘Paonazzo’ (Purple-Violet Marble)isa Principal location of quarries meta-breccia with clasts chiefly derived from Stat- uary and/or Calacata types, with a characteristic Marble quarrying activities throughout the entire purple-violet pigmentation of the clasts. The Apuan Alps region are carried out in five main Marmo ‘Zebrino’ (Striped Marble) is a variety con- areas (Fig. 3): sisting of decimetre-thick layers of white-yellowish † Carrara area (Western Apuan Alps – ‘C’ in marbles regularly alternated with thinner beds of Fig. 3): municipality of Carrara; grey-greenish marble. At places, the truly marble † Massa area (Western Apuan Alps – ‘M’ in rock shifts into a sort of calc-schist, globally sim- Fig. 3): municipality of Massa; ilar to the Statuary and named ‘Cremo Delicato’ † Lunigiana area (Northern Apuan Alps – ‘L’ in (light cream-coloured marble) or ‘Cremo Tirreno’ Fig. 3): municipality of Fivizzano; when the veins are green-greenish. Cremo Delicato † Garfagnana area (Northeastern Apuan Alps – is quarried in the Carrara basins of Torano and Mis- ‘G’ in Fig. 3): municipalities of Vagli, Minuc- eglia whilst the Cremo Tirreno variety is quarried ciano, Villa Collemandina; in Versilia (southern Apuan Alps) (see Principal † Versilia area (Southern Apuan Alps – ‘V’ in Location of Quarries). Traditionally both materials Fig. 3): municipalities of Stazzema, Seravezza. are cut against the grain (the hard way). All these areas take the global name of Carrara Marmo ‘Paonazzo’ (Purple-Violet Marble) Marble District, although some of them are objec- and Marmo ‘Zebrino’ (Striped Marble) are statisti- tively at a distance from the Carrara basins sensu cally not relevant, are produced in very limited stricto. amounts but have a large worldwide diffusion and are quite renowned from a decorative point of view. The incidence of the most important commercial Carrara Area (Western Apuan Alps) varieties in the global production of the Apuan Alps region is as follows: It is a vast region, which develops altogether over an area of over 2000 hectares: it is divided mor- † ‘Marmo Bianco Carrara’ (White Carrara phologically into three deeply-set valleys separated marble): c. 53.5%; from one another by the steep slopes of Mount † ‘Marmo Venato’ (Veined marble): c. 24,8%; Maggiore. These valleys, extending from the north- † ‘Marmo Bardiglio’ (Bardiglio marble): c. 3%; east to the southwest, correspond to the main † ‘Marmo Nuvolato’ (Cloud-like marble): c. 1.5%; marble extraction basins, which from west to † ‘Marmo Arabescato’ (Arabesque-like marble): east are Torano (with the sub-basin of Pescina- + c. 2.9% ( 1.4% Brouille´ variety); Boccanaglia), Miseglia-Fantiscritti and Colonnata, † ‘Marmo Statuario’/‘Statuario Venato’ (Statuary named after the three tiny quarrying villages en- marble/Veined statuary): c. 4%; sconced there. The currently active quarries in the † ‘Marmo Calacata’ (Calacata marble): c. 3.5%; whole Carrara area are 81. † Others c. 2.7% (including Marmo ‘Paonazzo’, The production of these basins is the highest Marmo ‘Zebrino’, ‘Cremo Delicato’, ‘Cremo (approximately 1 000 000 tons/year) of the entire Tirreno’, numerous Meta-breccias and the Apuan Alps areas and accounts for more than 70% calc-schists ‘Cipollini’). of the whole yearly marble production. This area As a final remark, it should be emphasized once is the one with the highest number of underground again that what is worldwide referred to simply as quarries in the world. ‘Carrara Marble’ consists, in reality, of more than 200 varieties, each of which has been given a differ- Massa Area (Western Apuan Alps) ent commercial name. As is easily understandable, such a process has generated an almost uncontrolled The Massa area belongs entirely to the municipa- proliferation of commercial definitions with the lity of Massa: it covers a small territory and its related difficulties in properly identifying each basin is the least extensive of the Apuan Alps specific variety and/or selecting it. region. Its production, quantitatively limited, Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 141

Fig. 2. Area of occurrence of the Apuan Alps marbles (Istituto Geografico De Agostini 1993; Meccheri et al. 2007). comes from a dozen quarries, two of which are province). In particular, the Mt. Altissimo sub-basin underground. includes some important quarries (Cervaiole in the southeast and Cava La Buca in the east) that are Lunigiana Area (Northern Apuan Alps) noteworthy. There are approximately 15 active quarries with an overall yearly production of about This area corresponds to the north-nortwestern part 150 000 tons. of the Apuan Alps and consists of various sub- The marble formation is strongly characterized basins, the most important of which are Monte by the presence of the ‘Arabescati’ types, which Sagro and Equi. It has fewer than 10 quarries, produ- in this area reach their maximum diffusion and cing approximately 100 000 tons/year. variety. As far as the distribution and the occur- rence of the various marble varieties is concerned, Garfagnana Area (Northeastern Apuan Alps) only the ‘Whites’, ‘Venati’, ‘Nuvolati’ and ‘Arabes- cati’ can be found (though in markedly diverse The Garfagnana area is located in the northeastern amounts) in every exploitation area of the Apuan part of the Apuan Alps close to the villages of Gra- Alps. Of particular note are the following: molazzo, Minucciano and Ugliancaldo. It includes the Arnetola, Acqua Bianca, Orto di Donna, Boana † ‘White Carrara’ of good to very good quality is and Vagli sub-basins with a total of about 20 quar- from all the localities and represents the bulk of ries. The average yearly production is around the Apuan marble production as a whole. Note- 100 000 tons. worthy are: W the ‘Bianco P’, famous for the almost total Versilia Area (Southern Apuan Alps) absence of veins, today more or less totally worked out but, maybe, still with tiny In the Versilia area, the extractive activity is located bodies in the Carrara, Massa and Vagli (Gar- in the Seravezza and Stazzema territories ( fagnana) areas; Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

142 P. PRIMAVORI

Fig. 3. Principal location of the Apuan Alps marbles. C, Carrara area; M, Massa area; L, Lunigiana area; G, Garfagnana area; V, Versilia area (Meccheri et al. 2007).

W some very homogeneous and fine-grained framework crosscutting the whitish light-grey white from Carrara, Massa, Equi (Lunigi- bulk rock. The ‘Venato debole’ type is quarried ana), Gorfigliano (Lunigiana), Vagli (Gar- almost everywhere, and the whole production fagnana), Mt. Altissimo (Versilia) and Mt. is comparable to that of the ‘White Carrara’, Corchia (Versilia). whilst the ‘Venato forte’ comes from some † Because of their marked resemblance to the marble levels in the Orto di Donna (Gramolazzo, ‘White Carrara’, the ‘Venati’ are also diffusely Lunigiana), Mt. Altissimo (Versilia) and Passo present. A global distinction can be made be- della Focolaccia (Gorfigliano–Garfagnana) dis- tween ‘Venato forte’ (heavy veined) and ‘Venato tricts (very rarely from other areas). debole’ (light veined) sub-types, the difference † The ‘Nuvolati’ forms large bodies with no par- being the major or minor (respectively) dark- ticular distribution inside the major ‘White ness, thickness and persistence of the vein Carrara’ and ‘Light Venati’ types (Carrara, Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 143

Massa, Seravezza (Versilia), Mt. Corchia (Versi- Santa (Versilia), and at Volegno (Versilia) in the lia) and Panie group (Versilia)) or thick beds southern Apuan Alps. The most classical example alternated with ‘White Carrara’ and ‘Heavy is probably the ‘Fantastico Arni’ from north of Veined’ levels (Orto di Donna (Lunigiana), Mt. Arni village. Altissimo (Versilia) and Passo della Focolaccia (Massa)) to form a kind of well-developed primary stratification. Probably due to the low Brief notes on the history of excavation commercial request in the last fifteen to twenty years, the ‘Nuvolati’ production has been rather The Carrara area is probably the sole area in the scarce. world where all the most important exploitation † In contrast, the ‘Arabescati’ are intensely techniques, including the most rudimentary histori- exploited in various areas, because they fre- cal equipments, have been set up, tested, developed quently combine decorative beauty with high- and exported to many other marble areas in the quality physical–mechanical features. Many world. It can be objectively stated that the Carrara kinds of the ‘Brouille´’ marble are extracted area has always been a school area or a training mostly in the three Carrara basins; the ‘Arabe- area not only for many other national districts but scato Arnetola’ comes from Vagli (Garfagnana); also for many worldwide operators. In light of the ‘Arabescato Faniello’ comes from Arni this, it is here considered opportune to include a (Versilia); the ‘Altissimo, Cervaiole’ and ‘Brec- brief focus on the history of excavation. cia Rio Serra’ are exploited in the southern Mt. The first sure data concerning exploitation of the Altissimo (Versilia); the ‘Arabescato Corchia’ marble deposits in the Apuan Alps (Carrara area) comes from the quarries of the homonymous date back to the beginning of the 1st century BC mountain (Versilia). when the Apuan region had already long been Regarding the other varieties: under Roman control. At that time the marble was called ‘lunense marble’, as the Apuan extraction † in the Carrara area the ‘Statuari’ and ‘Veined centre was identified with the town of Luna. This Statuari’ give the widest and most continuous was a Roman colony founded about a century levels, but interesting though scattered outcrops before, from whose harbour the ‘naves lapidariae’ are also present in the Massa area and in the (stone ships) loaded with this precious material set Mt. Altissimo region (Versilia); sail for . The remains of the Roman city can † the ‘Calacata’ types are almost all confined to still be seen on the plains of the present-day Luni, the Carrara inland as well, but in other zones about ten kilometres away from Carrara. minor bodies are associated with the ‘Statuari’ Ancient evidence regarding the use of the or crop out as particular variations of local ‘Ara- lunense marble for both public and private buildings bescati’, for example, the ‘Calacata Arnetola’ in Rome indicates that at that time the extraction of (Vagli – Garfagnana); marble must have already been carried out on an † conversely, the ‘Bardigli’ and ‘Veined Bardigli’ industrial scale. What is unsure is if it was really are more regularly present in all the Apuan the Romans who first discovered the deposits. marbles and, though forming usually restricted Perhaps the Apuan Ligurians, the people who inhab- lenses, they give locally important types among ited the region before the Roman invasion, or which the best known is the ‘Bardiglio Cap- the Etruscans, who certainly occupied at least the pella’ near Seravezza (Versilia). coastal strip of land, had already made use of the Apart from the ‘Arabescati’, ‘Calacata’ and ‘Pao- Apuan marble deposits. However, be that as it may, nazzo’ breccia-like marbles, other commercially excavation was not as important as it was during important meta-breccias are provided by some Roman times. horizons stratigraphically distinct from the Liassic In-depth studies have revealed the presence of Marble formation sensu stricto. They mainly numerous locations showing signs of ancient ‘cut- occur in Seravezza inland, southern Apuan Alps tings’ that can be attributed to the Roman Epoch. (Versilia) – the Seravezza Breccia – and in the What proves that the Romans were well aware of Arni (Versilia) and Arnetola (Vagli–Garfagnana) the expanse of the Apuan deposits is the fact that districts. They include marbles like the ‘Arabescato these locations, which we can rightly say correspond Vagli’, the ‘Breccia Rossa Arnetola’ and the ‘Ara- to the same number of quarries or groups of quarries, bescato Arni’. are homogeneously distributed among the three Finally, the particular family of ‘Cipollini’, marble basins exploited today (Torano, Miseglia- mainly represented by Cretaceous–Eocene calc- Fantiscritti, Colonnata). Moreover, they often corre- schists, mainly occurs in the districts of Gorfigliano spond to quarries still in operation today too. (Garfagnana), Arnetola (Garfagnana) and Boana But, the cuttings are not the only findings. Apart (Vagli–Garfagnana), Arni (Versilia) and Isola from many tools used for excavation, pieces of Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

144 P. PRIMAVORI handwork, inscriptions and epigraphs have also the Roman Epoch. Nevertheless, the great quantity been found in the exploitation areas. These show of Apuan marble used in Monumental Rome and, how the extraction activities were structured accord- above all, the great number of types used, among ing to a well defined organization, which strongly which we find Statuario, White Carrara and Bardi- resembled the extraction techniques in use in the glio, gives reason to suppose that the number of Apuan quarries up to some decades ago. quarries was much higher than the number still in Without machines to cut the rock, this operation existence today. Important information has been had of course to be carried out by hand with the passed on to us thanks to the writings of Giovenale aid of a hammer and chisel, trying as now to take who at the beginning of the 2nd century A.C. spoke fullest advantage of the natural fractures and the of how the roads of Rome were invaded by carts car- rock faces with less mechanical resistance. This is rying loads of lunense marble. how the ‘caesurae’, or rather the channels forming There does exist however an estimate regard- the main cuts into the mountain, were made ready ing the number of people engaged in each Roman for the separation of the blocks, which were then quarry. It is calculated that in a medium-sized quarry divided and cut into square shapes of a manageable working at its maximum capacity there were about a size. The latter operations were carried out by hundred people in all, including both the work- making ‘formelle’, V-section cuts along the surfaces men and the supervisors. This is an extremely sig- to be opened where iron plates were inserted. Iron nificant figure especially when multiplied by the wedges were placed between these plates, which total number of quarries in existence. However, as were then hammered in until the channel opened is well known, at that time labour was extremely up. Sometimes, in order to break the block away cheap and consequently prices were advantageous from the mountain, wooden wedges were inserted, and continued to be so at least until the 4th which, once wet, increased in volume and so century A.C. when the big economic crisis that hit exerted the necessary pressure to break the rock. the entire empire culminated in prohibition of the However, it remains uncertain whether this tech- extraction of lunense marble. nique was really used by the Romans or whether There are no data concerning the exploitation of the traces of its application visible on some find- Apuan marbles for a very long time after Roman ings should be attributed to decidedly more recent times. Moreover, at least until the 2nd century times. anyway, excavation, even if it was not completely An important conceptual difference, compared interrupted, was probably of little importance. with more recent extraction techniques, is rep- Only towards the end of the 13th century, under resented by the fact that the raw material was trans- the reign of Federico I, can it be said that extraction formed into a semi-finished product in the quarry activities were resumed in the Carrara basins. At itself. On the one hand, this avoided the useless that time excavation techniques must have been transport downhill of extra weight that would then much the same as those applied in Roman times. have been eliminated in the processing stage: on The operations were still carried out exclusively the other hand, this meant that particular care was manually, and this was so at least until the 18th required when lowering the handwork, which was century when the first excavations using explosives, very much more fragile than the rough blocks. It and in particular ‘black powder’, were carried out. has now been confirmed by various studies that Obviously, the use of explosives was immediately the latter operation was carried out by the ‘lizzatura’ widely approved as it allowed for the breaking method (see Related heritage issues), used in the away of vast quantities of rock in a relatively short Apuan basins to lower the blocks downhill until time. This technique making use of explosives was about thirty years ago. Such a differentiation, as called ‘varata’ (blasting). Once the rock face to be far as extraction activities are concerned, inevitably knocked down had been established, one or more led to specialization of the workers, who were ‘mines’ were made. First of all, deep holes, or divided into different categories according to rather proper shafts in the rocky mass were made their different duties within the organization of a by hand; then, at the end of these shafts, with the quarry. The ‘caesores’ took care of the main cuts aid of hydrochloric acid, chambers big enough to into the mountain; the ‘quadratarii’ were assigned contain the necessary quantity of black powder the job of squaring the blocks, a job that required were dug out. The explosion caused the breaking a certain expertise in the use of the chisel; finally, away of huge portions of mountain in irregular the ‘maquinarii’ were responsible for lifting and blocks that were then cut down, again manually, transporting the blocks. All the quarry activities into saleable sizes. However, this technique had were led and supervised by the ‘magister ab mar- one big drawback in that it destroyed a great deal moribus’, the equivalent of today’s quarry foreman. of good marble, and it produced an enormous quan- Unfortunately it is impossible to estimate, even tity of waste material, which increased the size of loosely, the extent of the extraction activities in the marble dumps out of all proportion. No new Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 145 techniques to replace the destructive blasting system (Hercynian) basement were involved in the Alpine came to light until the end of 19th century. orogenesis through two, synmetamorphic, main tec- In 1889, at the International Exhibition in Paris, a tonic events. new system was presented that allowed for the The first deformation phase (D1), active at cutting of marble with a helicoidal wire. In less the Oligocene–Miocene boundary (between about than six years Carrara immediately adopted this 30 My BP and 25 My BP) was compression related new revolutionary system, which offered the great and caused the above-said tectonic units to pile up. advantage of performing large cuts directly into The rocks of the Apuan Unit suffered severe the mountain face. deformation through development of a penetrative The performances, the versatility and the favour- foliation (S1), axial planar to NE-facing, submilli- able economic aspects of this technology acceler- metric to pluri-kilometric isoclinal folds coeval to ated its diffusion in all the Carrara basins, making green schist facies metamorphism. The evolution the helicoidal wire the top technology for more of this phase led to several laminations along the than 80 years, until the appearance of diamond flanks of the folds, widespread elongate lineation wire (1978–1979). Since then, the last 35 years parallel to the S1 (stretching of clasts, fossils, etc., belong to the recent history of marble exploitation boudinage, linear preferred orientation of meta- with the definitive adoption of diamond wire and morphic minerals) and an increasing development its use together with the chain saw in a combination of sheath geometry in the fold style passing from that provides the best results in terms of pro- WSW to ENE. ductivity, safety, quarry yield and versatility. The following tectonic phase (D2) began in Early Miocene (nearly 25 My BP) as a consequence of the tectonic regime’s inversion from compression Geological age and geological setting to extension. This made the piled units progressively In the regional context of the inner northern Italian uplifted in junction, since Late Miocene, with the Apennines, the Apuan Alps is an uplifted and first openings of the eastern Ligurian and Tyrrhe- severely eroded region (the ‘Apuan core complex’; nian Seas. This uplift resulted in a large-scale posi- Carmignani & Kligfield 1990) in which the Tertiary tive structure (the Apuan ‘dome’) characterized by a fold-and-thrust structure of the Apennine chain very complicated internal geometry and a NW–SE is best exposed. The deepest part consists of the lengthened shape. so-called Apuan Metamorphic Complex (AMC) The most frequent D2 structures are variously that comprises the metamorphic sequences of the sized folds, with axial planar foliation (S2) Massa Unit and the underlying Apuan Unit (Auto- accompanied by a green-schist facies blastesis, ret- chtonous Auctorum): the latter includes almost rogressive with respect to the syn-late D1 imprint- all of the ornamental stones of concern here and ing. On the whole, these folds form staircase sets are identified under the general term ‘Carrara diverging from the main hinge zone of the regional Marble’. megastructure toward both the SW and ENE along Upwards the AMC is followed by unmetamor- the SW and NE slopes of the ‘dome’. These folds phosed cover units; that is, the Tuscan Nappe, the are often related to several, ductile-to-ductile– Canetolo Unit, and some units from the Ligurian brittle shear surfaces whose kinematics matches Domain named Liguride Units sensu lato. the vergence of the same folds. The lithostratigraphic sequence of the Apuan During the final stages of the Apuan uplift, the Unit is formed by the following main groups of extensional structures gradually changed from meta-sediments: mainly ductile to brittle; that is, high angle normal faults trending both NW–SE and, less frequently, (1) Middle–Late Triassic to Early–Middle Lias- SW–NE. sic meta-dolostones, dolomitic marbles and pure marbles; The Ornamental Stones (2) Middle Liassic to Early Cretaceous cherty marbles, meta-cherts and calc-schists; The Apuan Alps provide various kinds of ornamen- (3) Early Cretaceous to Early Oligocene phyllites tal rocks such as pure and impure marbles, dolomitic and meta-siltites, locally containing marble marbles, meta-breccias, ‘cipollini’ and meta- interlayers, calc-schists and lenses of meta- sandstones. Since all these rocks are often generally calc-arenites; identified as ‘Apuan marbles’, or erroneously (4) Late Oligocene to very Early(?) Miocene ‘Carrara Marble’, it is worth specifying that: quartz-feldspathic micaceous meta-sandstone. † The marbles sensu stricto (s.s.; including pure, This sequence was deposited over a portion of impure and dolomitic marbles) correspond to the palaeo-African margin, and, during the Ter- the Lower Liassic Marble s.s. formation of the tiary, both the Alpine cover and its pre-Alpine Apuan Unit sequence. Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

146 P. PRIMAVORI

† Meta-breccias are meta-rudites principally per- C, C/D and D. The C variety has a very light taining to stratigraphic horizons older or youn- groundmass (almost white) with an even vein ger than the Marbles s.s. but to some extent pattern that is not very marked; C/D varieties also to the latter (the ‘arabesque’ type, e.g.). have a regular groundmass but not as white as † The ‘cipollini’ are calc-schists that form thick the C variety, whereas the D variety also has a and persistent bodies corresponding to younger regular pattern but a darker, white-greyish formations and a few thin levels also at the top groundmass. of the Marble s.s. (‘Zebrino’, e.g.). ‘Marmo Venato’ (Veined marble): ‘Marmo † Finally, the Upper Oligocene flysch is exploited Venato’ has a groundmass varying in colour for production of meta-sandstones and dark from white to grey with a clear evident pattern grey–blackish meta-siltites and phyllites that is often oriented. Like White Carrara this (‘Pietra del Cardoso’). variety can be classed either as C, C/DorD. The so-called Carrara area is one of the extraction ‘Marmo Bardiglio’ (Bardiglio marble) and areas that can be identified within the Apuan Alps ‘Marmo Nuvolato’ (Cloud-like marble): context: it is the largest and the one with the These marbles have fairly even dark-grey colour highest number of active quarries. of the groundmass. Dark-grey and whitish vein The microstructural variability of the Apuan patterns may be present or, in the Nuvolato marble varieties may have been known for a long variety typical of Carrara, irregular but oriented time but has only recently been the subject of whitish-colour shades. The Imperial variety in-depth studies due to the fact that it is closely typical of Garfagnana area has an even grey 2 related to the alteration/degradation of the materials blue groundmass with no marked veins. and their behaviour in situ. ‘Marmo Arabescato’ (Arabesque-like marble): ‘Marmo Arabescato’ has white or grey (or other colour) groundmass with an irregular pattern of Petrographic name darker-colour veins that generally follow a pre- ferential direction. Dominant colours of the Due to the petrographic variability of the different vein are: intense grey (Arabescato Carrara, Ara- ‘Carrara’ Marble varieties, this paragraph reports bescato Cervaiole, Arabescato Corchia), grey– the petrographic names of the seven main commer- dark greenish (Arabescato Faniello) and creamy- cial varieties, as described in Commercial designa- brownish (Arabescato Vagli). tions. Names are given according the standard EN ‘Marmo Statuario’/‘Statuario Venato’ (Statuary 12407: marble/Veined statuary): These marbles have a (1) ‘Marmo Bianco Carrara’ (White Carrara pure white groundmass, verging on pale yellow- marble), marble; ish-ivory, that normally has no veins or some (2) ‘Marmo Venato’ (Veined marble), marble; very shaded ones. Where the vein pattern is (3) ‘Marmo Bardiglio’ (Bardiglio marble), more frequent and evident (Statuario Venato), marble; the colour of the veins is light to intense grey. (4) ‘Marmo Nuvolato’ (Cloud-like marble), ‘Marmo Calacata’ (Calacata marble): ‘Marmo marble Calacata’ has white–ivory-white saccharoid (5) ‘Marmo Arabescato’ (Arabesque-like marble), groundmass with soft, shaded grey, light-green metamorphic breccia; tolight-yellowveins. Theseveinssometimesform (6) ‘Marmo Statuario’/’Statuario Venato’ (Statu- undulating bands that are more or less regular. ary marble/Veined statuary), marble; (7) ‘Marmo Calacata’ (Calacata marble), marble. Natural variability Refer to Commercial designations. Primary colour(s) and aesthetics of stone

Making reference to the seven main commercial Composition varieties listed in Commercial designations, the following primary colours and aesthetic of the The Apuan marbles are carbonate rocks (limestone ‘Carrara Marble’ can be identified: and minor dolostone), which re-crystallized under ‘Marmo Bianco Carrara’(White Carrara metamorphic conditions. Chemical analyses carried marble): ‘Marmo Bianco Carrara’ ranges from out on a wide range of different varieties (belonging white to a greyish colour with shaded grey mostly to the Carrara area) give 95–99 wt% CaCO3. veins in an irregular pattern. The three main var- From a petrographical point of view, the following ieties of White Carrara are classed according to minerals can be found: the colour of the groundmass and are known as † Essential mineral: ; Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 147

† Accessory minerals, more frequent: pyrite, many others. As with other fine-grain marbles, it is muscovite, quartz, dolomite, opaque minerals also particularly suitable in applications where the (hematite, magnetite); translucency phenomenon is used. † Accessory minerals, less frequent: sericite, epi- dotes, titanite. Durability issues Because of its quite pure (CaCO3 component) com- position, the huge waste material of the ‘ravaneti’ As far as the durability is concerned, attention constitutes a very important geo-resource. At Car- should be paid with some Carrara Marble types to rara there are several industries that work marble the following phenomena: waste for calcium carbonate production (powder, (a) Granular disaggregation concerns the loss of 0–2 mm in size; granulated material 2–20 mm in cohesion in the marble, related to detachment size) and its use in other industries (paper, fillers, of crystals. Such a phenomenon is known to pharmacological products, painting etc.). occasionally occur exclusively in low– medium thickness elements installed outdoors Technical properties and is mostly confined to White Carrara and Veined Marble commercial varieties. Values of the most significant technical properties (b) Bowing is the phenomenon in which the mar- for the seven commercial types illustrated in Com- ble elements are affected by dimensional and mercial designations are reported in Table 1. geometrical instability: distortion of shape, bending out of shape and warping are the most common evidences. This phenomenon Suitability is reported to affect mostly low–medium Since its earlier history, the Carrara Marble has thickness elements installed outside with dry demonstrated technical properties that have made systems (mechanical anchors). White Carrara it suitable for any type of use and applications: and Veined Marble varieties appear to be the building, decoration, architecture, , funer- most vulnerable types. Both granular disag- ary art, urban landscape and, more recently, gregation and the bowing phenomena imply a modern digital design. Historically speaking, in loss of mechanical strength. These phenomena public areas the marble has been used practically have been investigated in numerous projects everywhere, and for any purpose; cobbled pave- for several decades, the largest one being the ments or streets paved with slabs made from European project TEAM. Results of the elements laid edge to edge, sidewalks, pedestrians TEAM project are nowadays incorporated in roads, and so on. The urban landscape and the the European product standard for cladding common buildings have always taken advantage of (EN 1469) in order to limit as much as possible its versatility; slabs for steps, balconies, skirting, the inconvenience related to these phenomena. fountains, benches, and so on. The oldest buildings (c) Discolouration refers to the tendency of are built almost entirely of this marble; from walls to some varieties (once again, above all White stairs, landings to balconies, terraces to ledges, Carrara and Veined Marble) to, slowly but lintels for doors and windows. In the interior it has continuously, acquiring a yellowish-brown- been used for tables, kitchen-tops and stairs. ish-orangine tone. The phenomenon, almost A relevant part of the reputation of Carrara exclusively observed in floors (both indoor Marble is indisputably linked to the name of and outdoor), appears to be related to the inter- famous sculpturers, artists and architects such as action (oxidation) of iron-bearing minerals, Michelangelo, Donatello, Jacopo Della Quercia, dispersed in the marble mass, with the water Canova, Bernini, and many others who decided to (proceeding from screed, mortar, cementicious use this marble for their most important works. In adhesives, atmospherics etc.). An extremely this sense, although it is clear that the carving per- recent European standard (EN 16140) is now formance of a stone can effectively only be available to test the dimension stones for this defined by actually carving/sculpting it, there has possible inconvenience. always been a global agreement on the excellent After saying that, it is of utmost importance to properties of the Carrara Marble. A unique mix of underline that these described phenomena are con- grain size, purity, texture and grains interlocking, fined to some specific varieties, namely White accompanied by what is scientifically defined a Carrara and Veined Marble, and all those varieties saccharoid structure, give many varieties of that can be substantially assimilated to them. All Carrara Marble a top-level performance in sculp- the other commercial types perform well and ture works, particularly with some varieties such have never been shown to be susceptible to these as Statuario, Statuario Venato, Bianco P and inconveniences. 148

Table 1. Some technical properties related to the seven main commercial varieties of Apuane Alps marbles* Downloaded from

TECHNICAL PROPERTY U.M. 1. White 2. Veined 3. Bardiglio 4. Cloud-like 5. Arabesque-like 6. Statuary 7. Calacata || Carrara† marble‡ marble‡ marble§ marble marble/Veined marble1 statuary}

MEAN VALUES/DESCRIPTIONS http://sp.lyellcollection.org/

Apparent density (EN Kg/m3 2710 2710 2700 2700 2710 2710 2710 1936) Open porosity (EN 1936) % 0.30 0.40 0.40 0.40 0.40 0.3 0.3 Water absorption at % 0.07 0.12 0.17 0.15 0.17 0.09 0.11 atmospheric pressure

(EN 13755) PRIMAVORI P. Flexural strenght in natural MPa 19.5 11.6 12.0 13.5 13.9 15.9 16.9 conditions (EN 12372)2

Flexural strenght after MPa 20.3 9.6 9.7 10.7 13.5 13.9 15.6 atBooksEditorialCommitteeonMay19,2017 exposure to 48 frost cycles (EN 12372 + EN 12371)2 Uniaxial compressive MPa 59.1 101.4 98.1 102.4 86.8 91.6 67.2 strenght (EN 1926)2 Slip resistance (honed – 80 (dry) 71 (dry) 63 (dry) 66 (dry) 63 (dry) 59 (dry) 61 (dry) finishing) – USRV value 49 (wet) 33 (wet) 30 (wet) 31 (wet) 33 (wet) 47 (wet) 35 (wet) (EN 14231)

*Source: The Tuscan Marble identities †Fantiscritti locality (Carrara area) ‡Belgia, Gioia, La Piana localities (Carrara area) §Carrara area || Stazzema locality (Versilia area) }Ravaccione, Bettogli localities (Carrara area) 1Calocara, Bettogli localities (Carrara area) 2orientation of the specimen unknown Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 149

Vulnerability and maintenance of supply † Marly Horse (1739–1745), , Paris (France). A true assessment of the available marble reserves in † Antonio Canova’s Paolina Borghese (1804– the whole Apuan Alps region has never been done, 1808), Villa Borghese, Roma (Italy). but reliable estimates (from different sources), the † Persephone (1844), Honolulu Museum of Art, evidence of the physical extension of the Marble Hawaii (U.S.A.). Formation, and its thickness (over 1000 metres in † Eternal Springtime (1901), location unknown. some part of the Apuan Alps) allows one to state † King Edward VII Memorial (1913), Birmingham that the available reserves are sufficient for centuries (UK). and centuries. Buildings (including Recent buildings) Buildings and so on (geographical order) The applications of Carrara Marble are so vast that Europe (Mediterranean Area) it is objectively not easy to synthesize them in a sat- † Museo dei Fori Imperiali – Mercati di Traiano isfactory way. This is increasingly true when we (46 BC–113 AD), Rome (Italy). direct our attention to the fields of sculpture and † ’s Column (113 AD), Rome (Italy). artistic works, being that innumerable examples of † Pantheon (126 AD), Rome (Italy). such applications are preserved in a large number † Miracle Square, Baptistere, Cathedral and of churches, , academies, temples and so Leaning Tower (1063–1362), (Italy). on. The following list is therefore a non-exhaustive † Cathedral, 12th century, Carrara (Italy). one, but it enumerates a selected number of extra- † Cathedral (1215–1263), (Italy). ordinary artworks together with a significant num- † Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral (1296), Flor- ber of civil constructions. ence (Italy). † Robba Fountain, Ljubljana (Slovenia). (chronological order) † Tripoli Auditorium (Lybia). † Temple of Apollo Palatinus (31–28 BC), Rome † Palazzo dei Congressi, Paris (France). (Italy). † ‘Lingotto’ Fiat Building, Torino (Italy). † Temple (Ara Pacis Augustae (13–9 BC), † Padre Pio Church, San Giovanni Rotondo Campus Martius, Rome (Italy). (Foggia, Italy). † Colossus of Constantine (c. 280–337), Palazzo † Grand Arche, Paris (France). dei Conservatori of the Musei Capitolini, Rome † Esso-EUR Headquarters, Rome (Italy). (Italy). † L’Abeille Insurance Headquarters, Milano † Fonte Gaia fountain, (1346, restored 1859) (Italy). Piazza del Campo, Siena (Italy). † Astrea Villa, Genova (Italy). † Ilaria del Carretto sepulchre (1408), Cathedral, † Senate Palace, Paris (France). Lucca (Italy). † Chancellor’s Office of Japan, Paris (France). † Michelangelo’s Pieta` (1497–1499), Basilica di † Bank of France, Montrouge (France). San Pietro (). † Bank of France, Clermont-Ferrand (France). † Michelangelo’s (1501–1504), Academy † U.R.S.S. Embassy, Paris (France). Gallery, (Italy). † Michelangelo’s Pope Julius II tomb (1505– Europe (non-Mediterranean Area) 1543), Basilica San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome † Marble Arch (1827), London (UK). (Italy). † Oslo Opera House, Oslo (Norway). † Michelangelo’s Dying Slave (1513–1516), † Metro Bruxelles (). Louvre Museum, Paris (France). † Alison Lapper Pregnant, Trafalgar square, † The rape of the Sabine women (1574–1580), London (UK). Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence (Italy). † St. Petersburg Museum, Russia. † Pluto and Proserpina (1621–1622), Galleria † Church of University Clinic, Innsbruck (Austria). Borghese, Rome (Italy). † Royal Palace, Warsaw ( ). † Apollo and Dafne (1622–1625), Galleria Borgh- † Terminal of the Liegi Undergound (Belgium). ese, Rome (Italy). † Central Post, Stuttgart (Germany). † Bust of Cardinal Scipione Borghese (1632), Gal- leria Borghese, Rome (Italy). † The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa (1647–1652), Americas Capella Cornaro, Santa Maria della Vittoria † Harvard Medical School Buildings, Boston, church, Rome (Italy). Massachusetts (USA). Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

150 P. PRIMAVORI

† Aon Center (Chicago) Chicago, Illinois USA). The Fine Arts Academy † A. Hammer Museum, Westwood, California (USA). Devoted to people more interested in the historical– † IBM Offices building and garage, Clear Lake artistic viewpoint, in the 14th century arcaded Texas (USA). courtyard of the building in which it is housed, † Hotel Marriot Marquis, Atlanta (USA). the Academy exhibits an important collection of † Bogota` University, Bogota` (Colombia). Roman marbles divided into three categories: fig- urative sculpture, religious and funerary monuments and architectural elements. Of particular worth is Middle East–Far East its collection of Luni (ancient Carrara) sculpture, † Cathedral(interior),Manila(). with works like a man in a toga,atorso clad in † Sheikh Zayed Mosque, (UAE). armour,astatue of Leda, a statue of a woman with † Akshardham, Delhi (). chiton and mantle,atorso of Minerva. † National Library, (Australia). In addition to the Academy, artwork is featured † Fashion Atelier, Osaka (Japan). at two recently founded institutions, the Car- † World Trade Center, Osaka (Japan). rara Artistic Marble Consortium (CMAC), and the † Bank Bail, Jakarta (Indonesia). Sculpture Museum. The CMAC, set up in 2004, is † Bank of Oman, Dubai (UAE). primarily concerned with maintaining and pro- † Buddhist Temple, Singapore (Singapore). tecting Carrara’s artistic and cultural heritage: it † Jeddah University, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia). promotes a trademark for marble to qualify the pro- ducts traditionally made by local artisans from local marbles. The Sculpture Museum, inaugurated during the Related heritage issues 2006 Sculpture Biennial, is devoted to the world The following issues are considered to be of relevant of sculpture as a whole; obviously with an emphasis importance within the so-called ‘Carrara marble on works in marble where Carrara materials reign system’. supreme. The project is clearly designed to make Carrara a new Tuscan museum hub, thanks to poss- ible synergies between the two Museums (Marble Civic Marble Museum and Sculpture) and the Academy. The Marble Museum was founded in 1982 for the purpose of collecting and documenting testimonials The Monticolo Pulley to local marble culture. It houses well-rounded col- lections devoted to Roman archeology, history of In 1889 at the International Exposition of Paris, a the area, marble samples, industrial archaeology, revolutionary machine was presented, which cut plaster model and modern sculptures. marble blocks with a helicoidal wire (see also It also has a library rich in texts on marble Brief Notes on The History of Excavation): it was and local history. Recently added is a multime- invented and patented by the Belgian engineer Che- dia station showing films on the collections. The valier in 1854. Since 1895 it was used also in the museum also has outdoor areas displaying arte- marble quarries of Carrara where it became the facts too large for indoor exhibition. Among them dominant technology, acquiring, in the meanwhile, are the cart of a steam-powered tractor for block a considerable diffusion all over the world. hauling (19th century), a flatcar (1890), the last In 1897, in the quarries of the Carrara basins, an remaining of the marble railway, a steam-powered ingenious innovation was brought to this technology tractor converted to a rock crusher (1910), a by engineer Monticolo. The innovation, the ‘pene- loaded sled with annexed machinery for cutting trating pulley’, consisted of a device that consider- with a helical wire, a 19th century gangsaw, and a ably increased the cutting potential, because it was tool extractor wheel from the same period as the capable not only of carrying the wire for the cut gangsaw (1880). but also of penetrating directly into the rock. This Over the years, the museum has become the innovation gave a definitive solution to the insuper- venue where the city’s historical legacy is enshrined, able problem of the so-called ‘blind cuts’. thus providing scholars with valuable material for their studies. It is divided into the following sec- The historical commemoration of the tions: Modern Sculpture, Vatteroni’s Donation, ‘lizzatura’ Roman Archaeology, Industrial Archaeology, Arti- facts of the Cathedral, Artifacts for Icon, Technical This commemoration takes place in the quarries in Application, The Marble Gallery, History of the the basin of Colonnata (Carrara sensu stricto area), Territory, Temporary Exhibitions usually on the first Sunday of August every year: Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

CARRARA MARBLE: A NOMINATION 151 it revives the marble carriage through the stone- representing, at the moment, the only way of trans- boat, named ‘lizzatura’, an extremely dangerous port of marble blocks. operation which was used since ancient times. In the lower portion of the Miseglia-Fantiscritti The stone-boat was a kind of sledge made with basin, the famous Ponti di Vara is not only a stereo- three big trunks put next to each other and shaped typed view of Carrara quarries, but also the more like skis: there was laid the blocks of marble (the visible testimonials of the old Marble Railway. ‘carica’), with a total weight of 15–20 tons. In order to carry the blocks down the mountainside, The monolith of carbonera quarry the stone-boat was driven along the ‘vie di Lizza’ (the stone-boating road, a kind of purpose-built In the Miseglia basin (Carrara area) the quarry of roadbed) or, more frequently, it was lowered down Carbonera has become famous for a memorable the ‘ravaneti’ (huge waste deposits, today part of event unique in the history of excavation of Apuan the local landscape) covering the downwards slope Alps marbles. In 1928, with the helical wire, a per- of the quarries. The stone-boat was kept by three fectly integral block of marble was extracted from big ropes partially coiled around the ‘piri’ (i.e. logs this quarry, deprived of any defect whatsoever and driven into the marble ground): the ropes were of an incredible size. It in fact measured 18 m in loosened slowly while a group of workers (sled length by 2.35 m in width and the same in height, men named ‘lizzatori’) laid before the stone boat and it weighed around 300 tons. The enormous a series of wood sleepers, named ‘parati’. The job block, rightly named ‘monolith’, was destined to took 16 or 17 men, under the direction of the become the obelisk of the ‘Mussolini Forum’ in Capolizza. Rome, where it stands to this day, and its transport The ‘Lizzatura’ was a tricky, dangerous ballet on to this destination represented an epic task steep slopes with uncertain footing, which depended especially when one considers the methods of trans- upon timing and teamwork. As a matter of fact, the port in use at that time. Initially, the monolith was Capolizza decided the path and guided the sled, but completely ‘caged up’ in a structure made of the actual steering was the job of the ‘mollatori’ who wood and iron, which weighed 64 tons, and taken would increase the slack on one of the ropes that down with the ‘Lizzatura’ system with the help of kept the sled from careening down the hill, thus 25 steel cables. From the bottom of the mountain, allowing the runners to turn in the other direction. still on the ‘lizza’, it was drawn by more than 30 Usually, this historical commemoration is closed pairs of oxen to the port, ready to be embarked on at the end of the morning with the bacon-fat tasting a purpose-built barge. To cover the 11 km from (‘ of Colonnata’), which is characteristic of the the quarry to the port it took 8 months of extremely village and is produced in the typical workshops hard work, and to facilitate the advancing of the famous all over the world. ‘lizza’ on the wooden sleepers, it supposedly required a good 70 000 litres of soap. The ‘ferrovia marmifera’ (the marble railway) The Carrara MARMOTEC fair Due to the dangerousness of the ‘Lizzatura’ system of transportation, many efforts were done to replace The Carrara MARMOTEC is one of the oldest inter- it. The most important step forward was made with national fairs in the worldwide sector of dimension the building of the Ferrovia Marmifera (The Marble stones and one of the two reference fairs in Italy; Railway), inaugurated on 19 August 1876. The first the other being MARMOMACC in Verona. For 32 trip was done 16 years later, in 1892. Once com- years it has represented a primary appointment for pleted, the marble railway covered a distance of all the operators linked to the natural stone sector more than 20 km, with 16 bridges – the Ponti di such as traders, professionals, manufacturers of Vara – and a series of 15 tunnels. It had 10 500 equipment,tools and plants, architects, designers more metres of secondary lines leading to sawmills and buyers and a key event to follow the latest ten- and workshops. dencies on the natural stone industry in a place still The Marble Railway has been a real masterpiece considered as the world capital of marble. of engineering that astonished Europe, if we con- The fair is organized by Internazionale Marmi & sider not only the time of construction, but also Macchine (IMM), a company established in 1978 the descent to overcome (450 m) and various struc- whose activities include promotion, analysis of tural challenges. Unfortunately, after World War market trends, technology transfer, project research Two and its economic consequences, the railway and consultancy involving the stone industry on proved uneconomical and the municipality decided an international scale. Among its numerous initiat- to stop it in 1963. Now that the marble railway no ives, flagship issues are represented by the Awards longer exists, its track and one part of the tunnels (Marble Architectural Awards; Dressed Stone have been inherited by powerful modern trucks Design Awards; Design Technology Awards) and Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Books Editorial Committee on May 19, 2017

152 P. PRIMAVORI the Stone Sectors, and a yearly book edited by IMM and alteration in Carrara marble: a preliminary study. is published containing updated and detailed stat- Science and Technology for Cultural Heritage, 7, istics about the world’s stone market. The fair takes 115–126. Bessi, I. 1989. Luci di marmot. Carrara, Massa, Italy. place every two years in the Fair Complex of Marina Blasi Bradley Pili di Carrara, which covers an area of 95 000 square , P., ,F.& , M. 1993. Cave apuane. ALDUS Editore, Carrara, Massa, Italy. metres, including 34 000 indoors. Boineau,A.&Perrier, R. 1995. La de´cohesion granu- laire, maladie des revetements de fac¸ades en marbles. Mines et Carrie`res-Industries Minerale, Aout- Other designations September 1995. Bonatti, S. 1938. Studio Petrografico delle Alpi Apuane. Taking into consideration the relevant historical, Memorie Descrittive della Carta Geologica d’Italia, commercial, technical, architectural and social role Roma, 26. played by the Carrara Marble, it is here proposed Bosticco, L., Fornaro,M.&Oreste, P. R. 1993. Utiliz- the additional designation of ‘Global Ornamental zazione dei metodi numerici per la razionalizzazione Stone’. dell’attivita` di coltivazione nelle cave sotterranee, con riferimento al marmo di Carrara. Quarry & Con- struction, 6, 7–13. Principal literature related to the Bradley,F.1991.Guida alle cave di marmo di Carrara. designated stone Internazionale Marmi e Macchine, Carrara, Massa, Italy. Bradley, F. 1998. Cave di Marmo di Carrara. Guida ai The principal literature includes Lazzoni 1880; Materiali e ai Produttori.Studio Marmo, Firenze, Italy. Bradley Medda Zaccagna 1881, 1932; Giampaoli 1897; Revere ,F.& , E. 1989. Le strade dimenticate. 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Cantisani, E., Canova, R., Fratini, F., Manganelli & Kligfield 1990; Bradley 1991, 1998; Dolci & Del Fa, C., Mazzuoli,R.&Molli, G. 2000. Nista 1992; Blasi et al. 1993; Bosticco et al. 1993; Relationships between microstructures and physical Istituto Geografico De Agostini (Novara) 1993; properties of white Apuan marbles: inferences on AA.VV. 1994; Coli & Grandini 1994; Andronio weathering durability. Periodico di Mineralogia, 69, 1995; Boineau & Perrier 1995; Meccheri 1996, 257–268. 2000; Bradley et al. 1997; Molli et al. 1997, 2000a, Cantisani, E., Fratini, F., Molli,G.&Pandolfi,L. 2000b, 2002; AA. VV. 1998; Bargagna 1998; 2003. Sulla provenienza apuana del marmot di cippi Barsottelli et al. 1998; Chicca 1998; D’Amato funerary etruschi. Acta Apuana, 2, 19–25. Capuzzi Avanzi & Verani 1998; Molli & Heilbronner 1999; , Q. 1988. La coltivazione del marmo in sotterra- neo. Centro Studi Economico-Sociali Carlo Cattaneo, Pinna 1999; Cantisani et al. 2000, 2003; Molli & Carrara. Meccheri 2000; Pieri et al. 2001a, 2001b; Bruschi Carmignani, L. 1985. Carta geologico-strutturale del et al. 2003; Buffoni & Giannetti 2003; Leiss & Complesso Metamorfico delle Alpi Apuane, Foglio Molli 2003; Molli & Vaselli 2006; Grelk et al. Nord, 1:25 000. Litografia Artistica Cartografica, 2007; Meccheri et al. 2007; Schouenborg et al. Firenze. 2007; Regione Toscana, Toscana Promozione, Min- Carmignani,L.&Giglia, G. 1977. Analisi mesostruttur- istero Sviluppo Economico, I.C.E. 2010. ale della zona occidentale delle Apuane metamorfiche. Bollettino della Societa` Geologica Italiana, 96, 429–450. References Carmignani,L.&Kligfield, R. 1990. Crustal extension in the northern Apennines: the transition from com- AA.VV. 1994. Paesaggi del marmot. Edizioni Marsilio. pression to extension in the Alpi Apuane core AA. VV. 1998. Le Alpi Apuane: un parco in cammino. complex. Tectonics, 9, 1275–1303. Pacini, Pisa, Italy. Carmignani, L., Giglia,G.&Kligfield, R. 1978. Struc- Andronio, A. 1995. 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