Ruined marble
Ruined marble (also landscape marble ) is a traditionally rooted trivial term for specifically layered limestones with numerous fractures, which occur mainly near Florence , between Rignano sull 'Arno and Santa Brigada, and partly in the Arno river . These sites are among the best known in Europe.
Further sites can be found in other areas in Italy as well as in Austria, the Czech Republic and Pakistan. Occasional occurrences of calcitically overprinted siltstones are also given this term if the visual impression is adequate.
These stones , which are called marbles, are not "real" marbles in the geological sense, but limestone or siltstone. As a result of faults and fault lines, structures have emerged in the stone that are reminiscent of ruin-like structures of buildings, churches and landscapes in small-format representations (up to about 10 × 10 centimeters). When sawing open with stone saws and then polishing, these structures are exposed. The high density of the rock structure enables very good polishing.
The plates are made as handicrafts and purchased by collectors. Until today (2008) these plates are mainly used for the design of murals or for table tops. Individual pieces that convey the illusion of images roughly reproducing the skyline of cities are particularly popular. Ruin marble has been widely used for stone inlays on cupboards, tables and sideboards since the Renaissance and then in the Baroque period .
literature
- Monica T. Price: Decorative Stone, the Complete Sourcebook . London (Thames and Hudson) 2007 ISBN 978-0-500-51341-5
