Corsi Collection of Decorative Stones

view of stone 168

Corsi 168, approx. 145 x 73 x 40 mm, © Oxford University Museum of Natural History

OUMNH Number: 168  
Name and quarry location: Diaspro tenero di Sicilia, from Taormina, Messina, Sicily, Italy  
Geological description: Fine-grained red limestone with synsedimentary slump folds.  
Comments: All Corsi's localities for the 'soft jaspers of Sicily' are derived from the descriptions given in Borch 'Lythologie Sicilienne', 1778. Taormina yields various limestones including a brecciated red compact limestone, according to Jervis (1889) and may well be the correct provenance for this specimen. Corsi compares this stone to Egyptian jasper, a siliceous stone showing colour banding and 'landscape marble' effects caused by penetrating ferruginous solutions, that was found as pebbles in the Egyptian desert and brought home as souvenirs by tourists in Egypt.  
References: Borch (1778) 130-161; Corsi (1845) 155-156; Dubarry de Lassale (2005) 290; Evangelista (1998); Jervis (1889) 480-481; Montana (1998) 64-68; Price (2007) 150-151  
Further information:
 


Corsi's classification: Class 1. Marbles; Section 2. Veined marbles; Species 11. Soft jaspers of Sicily  
Corsi's text: 67.8 Diaspro tenero di Sicilia. Rosso di Taormina  

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