Ruin marble

Ruin marble (even landscape marble) is a traditionally rooted trivial term for specific stratified limestones with numerous fractures, which occur mainly in the vicinity of Florence, between Rignano sull ' Arno and Santa Brigada, and partly in the river Arno. These sites are among the most famous in Europe. Other sites are located in other areas in Italy and in Austria, the Czech Republic and Pakistan. Partly occurrence of kalzitisch overprinted siltstones are occupied with an adequate optical impression with this term.

In these rocks, which are called marbles, these are not "real" marbles in the rock known union sense, but limestone or siltstone. As a result of dislocation and fracture lines structures have emerged in stone, reminiscent (10 centimeters to about 10 × ) to ruin -like formations of buildings, churches and landscapes in compact presentations. When sawing with stone saws and subsequent polishing these structures are exposed. The high density of the rock structure allows a very good polish.

The boards are manufactured as crafted objects and acquired by collectors. To date (2008), these plates are used primarily for the design of murals or for table tops. Individual pieces are particularly sought after, which give the illusion of images that reflect the skyline of cities in about. Ruin marble has been widely used since the Renaissance and then the Baroque stone inlaid on cabinets, tables and sideboards.