Corsi Collection of Decorative Stones

| return to catalogue
view of stone 319

Corsi 319, approx. 145 x 73 x 40 mm, © Oxford University Museum of Natural History

OUMNH Number: 319  
Name and quarry location: Alabastro sardonico, locality unknown  
Geological description: Compact banded travertine composed of coarsely crystalline calcite coloured red by hematite, adjoining or interbanded with colourless very coarsely crystalline calcite.  
Comments: Alabaster is a term now used for compact gypsum, and sardonyx is the name for translucent brown to red banded agate, a variety of quartz. As a consequence, there is double potential for confusion with the naming of this stone.  
References: Corsi (1845) 134  
Further information: Alabaster-travertine.pdf
 


Corsi's classification: Class 1. Marbles; Section 4. Concretionary marbles; Species 1. Alabasters; i. Antique alabaster  
Corsi's text: 95.26 Alabastro antico. Marmor Alabastrum. Alabastro sardonico  

Full entry in English

| return to catalogue
Enter some search terms
Show results as:

search tips

Searches the database for all stone records containing the words you enter. To search for a text string, put it between quotation marks. To search for stone records that don't contain a word, put a minus sign in front of it.

For example, entering: granite "coarse-grained" -Egypt will find all the coarse-grained granites that do not come from Egypt.

Terms of three characters or less have not been indexed.

Funded by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation Oxford University Museum of Natural History University of Oxford