Corsi Collection of Decorative Stones

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view of stone 484

Corsi 484, approx. 145 x 73 x 40 mm, © Oxford University Museum of Natural History

OUMNH Number: 484  
Name and quarry location: Serpentina di Torino from the province of Turin, Piedmont, Italy  
Geological description: Poorly-sorted breccia of heavily fractured, calcite-cemented clasts of serpentinite in a gritty ferruginous matrix.  
Comments: This is a brecciated serpentinite, and Corsi has misclassified it among his marbles. Some authorities believe it is rosso Levanto from Levanto, in Liguria, the best known source of red serpentinites in Italy. However, only the matrix is a reddish brown, and both green and red serpentinites were worked on a commercial basis in Corsi's time at a number of localities in the Italian Alps, including the Val di Susa in the province of Turin.  
References:  
Further information:
 


Corsi's classification: Class 1. Marbles; Section 5. Breccias; ii. Italian Breccias  
Corsi's text: 125.63 Breccia di Torino  

Full entry in English

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