Carrara Marble
Carrara Marble is the world’s most famous marble which was revered by the legendary Michelangelo. This beautiful stone has a background which can vary from white to a cool grey with a light grey veining throughout. Carrara exudes class and has remained popular since the time of the Roman Empire.
This marble is quarried in the Apuan Alps and was extensively used by Michelangelo1. Perhaps the most famous project he used Carrara marble for was the world-renowned statue of David2.
By choosing Carrara marble, be it for an item of furniture, a piece of décor or tiling you are assured to have an iconic luxury material which will holds its value for a lifetime.
Carrara marble was known as the “Luni Marble” in ancient Rome. This name derives from the area in which it was quarried in the province of Massa-Carrara.
The Apuan Alps in the Carrara region show evidence of more than 600 quarry sites. Over the years approximately half of these quarry sites have been depleted or abandoned. These quarries have produced more marble than any other region on earth.
The phrase Carrara marble can be used to describe any marble which is quarried from the Carrara mountains. However, in the trade referring to Carrara marble typically means Bianco Carrara C or Bianco Carrara CD. The letters C and CD are used to grade the quality of the marble.
Bianco Carrara C possesses a pure white background with light grey veining and dots. And Bianco Carrara CD has a darker background in between white and grey with darker veining (tiles in Bianco Carrara CD would be described as white grey marble tiles). Bianco Carrara C has more demand of the two types, which in turn leads to it being a more expensive material to purchase.
Below we have laid a sample of Carrara C above a sample of Carrara CD so you can see the difference for yourself.
Other marbles commonly quarried from Carrara include Bianco Venatino and Statuarietto.
The rarer marbles from this region are more prestigious which is reflected in their higher price. These marbles include Calacatta Gold (also known as Calacatta Oro), Calacatta Borghini, Arabescato Cerviao and Arabescato Vagli.
Carrara Marble has been used extensively in monuments across the world including ‘Marble Arch’ in London3, ‘The Pantheon’, ‘The Column of Marcus Aurelius’ and the interior of ‘The Manila Cathedral’.
As well as being used in notable monuments Carrara has been coveted for interior design projects across the world. This includes Carrara marble tiles frequently being used for the interior of hotels, residential properties and high-end office buildings.
Carrara marble can be seen in a range of applications including luxury furniture such as marble coffee tables and marble dining tables.
This beautiful marble has retained its popularity for centuries and you can be assured if you choose this material for your own project it will hold its beauty and value for centuries to come.
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