Do you know what Michelangelo said about the art of sculpture?
That it was easier to take out than to put in.
Removing the superfluous from the blocks of Carrara marble to free the work of art enclosed in it.
It was in this perspective that he created his masterpieces such as the David or La Pietà.
Yes, that is true!
It’s nice to imagine that a block of marble still contains what will become your table in a meeting room or dining room or the ultra – modern washbasin in your bathroom or, why not, your entire bathroom, from the wall covering to the floor, the bath, the shower tray and so on.
Yes, your dream home is still in the mountains of the Apuan Alps. … Let me explain!!!
Carrara marble, Italian excellence since the first century BC.
But what is Carrara Marble, where is it extracted, how is it used, how did it form, how many varieties exist etc.?
Well, if you want a clear and simple scientific explanation on Carrara marble, I invite you to watch the video by GeoPop, the Youtube channel of Andrea Moccia, the Neapolitan – born geologist who, after having travelled halfway around the world, for fun started to make videos that explain in a simple, concise and comprehensive way, scientific topics that we are curious to know about but that are often accompanied by too complex explanations.
Well, I leave you below Andrea’s video to understand, in a few words, what the world – famous Carrara marble is, how it was formed, and its main features.
Carrara marble: technical features.
As you will have seen in the video, Carrara marble is quarried in Italy from the Apuan Alps on the border between Tuscany and Liguria, where, as I told you earlier, your dream is still contained.
Known since the first century BC, it was extracted by the Romans in the first quarry in Luni, a small Ligurian village, and then shipped to Rome to make imposing monuments, noble villas and public buildings.
Today, little has changed in the extraction of this marble; in fact, the natural landscape of the Apuan Alps has been modified, creating white amphitheatres that can be reached and visited with expert guides and that will surprise the human eye, which will be astonished at how man has sculpted the mountain, laying bare this crystalline white rock.
But now let’s talk about the technical features.
As Andrea Moccia told you, there are 6 varieties of Carrara marble that have slight differences from each other:
– White Carrara marble: pure, with an exclusive crystalline white colour
– Statuary marble: similar to white Carrara marble, but tending more towards ivory
– Carrara Venato on a white background has fine grey veins
– Arabescato similar to Venato with more intense grey veins
– Calacatta has a white background with light yellow, grey, greenish and purple veins.
– Bardiglio marble tends more towards a greyish colour overall.
– Cipollino has a greenish colouring with white veins.
They change mainly in appearance rather than in the structure itself. These natural marbles are suitable for a wide variety of uses such as floors, wall coverings, washbasins, kitchen tops, but also design objects such as lamps, cups, tables, coffee tables, bathroom accessories, ice buckets, and so on. This is also possible thanks to modern technology using 3D scanners and high – precision robots that allow marble to be used for a variety of small objects and tools.
Thus, Carrara marble is no longer used exclusively for floor and wall coverings because of the large slabs from which it is cut, but also for decorative objects, furnishings and accessories.
2 small curiosities about Carrara marble
Nothing is thrown away from Carrara marble during processing. And do you know why?
From the residues of Carrara marble, a fine powder is obtained, namely calcium carbonate, which is used in paints, paper, toothpaste and even medicines.
And do you know what Carrara marble is used for in Colonnata, a village in the Apuan Alps?
It is used to prepare the famous Lardo di Colonnata, a lard that is obtained from the pig’s back and immersed in Carrara marble basins together with various spices and pickled for 6 months of seasoning before arriving on our tables.
But now let’s talk about the use of Carrara marble in modern contemporary furniture.
Carrara marble, how to use it to give prestige to your classic or modern architectural project.
Carrara marble, like many natural marbles, is well suited for covering floors, kitchen tops, bathrooms, and so on after it has undergone specific treatments to make it resistant to the absorption of acid substances.
It is a natural stone and the best treatment and care, after installation, is to treat it with neutral soaps.
It is excellent for floor coverings that must give prestige at first glance, therefore in spacious and elegant environments such as large hotel lobbies or waiting rooms, in those environments where you want to evoke classical beauty and a unique visual impact.
The strength and durability of Carrara marble subjected to water – repellent treatments make it perfect for giving refinement to a bathroom, whether for wall or floor coverings, but also just the shower tray or the bath or washbasin made of unique marble blocks.
This marble is excellent and elegant to use in a refined kitchen for the worktop, or the peninsula or island where the lively colour of an aperitif with friends contrasts with the white of the marble, or for the continuous covering of the back of the kitchen… but also for an elegant table in the dining room or an elegant coffee table to be combined with coloured leather or velvet sofas.
In the kitchen, Carrara marble goes well with light wood colours such as maple, cherry and ash, but also with stronger, more classic wood colours.
It is also excellent to combine furnishings with the use of marble with copper or steel details in both modern and classical environments.
A Carrara marble floor or staircase will certainly give prestige to a high – class boutique, an office, a meeting room: all those workplaces where the first glance represents the business card of a prestigious and successful company.
So what are you waiting for?
Visit us to find out what the Apuan Alps have in store for you!
Joking apart, if you want to find out for yourself why this marble is in such high demand all over the world and how you could add value to your project, contact us and we will give shape to your ideas!
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