Corsi 189, approx. 145 x 73 x 40 mm, © Oxford University Museum of Natural History
| OUMNH Number: | 189 |
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| Name and quarry location: | Marmo di Candoglia, marmo del Duomo, from Candoglia, Novara, Piedmont, Italy |
| Geological description: | Coarse-grained calcite marble with grey tinted 'veins', and with small grains of quartz scattered through it, giving a slightly mottled appearance. |
| Comments: | This is the marble used for the Duomo of Milan, obtained from a quarry near the village of Candoglia, Mergozzo, Prov. di Novara, Italy (Jervis, 1889) . Watson wrote in 1916 that 'The marble has always been strictly reserved for the up-keep and necessary repairs of the Cathedral; it is therefore practically unknown in commerce.' '...it is a light salmon coloured, coarsely crystalline rock, having a slightly mottled appearance when polished.' In fact the colour can vary from white (as in Corsi's specimen) to pale pink. The advent of diamond wire-saws has improved production sufficiently that some of this marble is now available on the commercial market to other users (Price, 2007). |
| References: | anon. (2005); Jervis (1889) 88-9; Price (2007) 106; Watson (1916) 174-175 |
| Further information: |
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| Corsi's classification: | Class 1. Marbles; Section 2. Veined marbles; Species 12. Veined marbles of Italy |
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| Corsi's text: | 70.11 Marmo del Duomo |