The different typologies of marble do not refer to categories of scientific classification, but to their commodity and commercial features. Different names have been created to identify the external characteristics that Carrara marble may have: they were born mainly in the quarrying and processing context (often mutated by quarrymen’s jargon or dialect), referring to the colour, the appearance or the place where the marble is quarried.

A research of the University of Siena for Regione Toscana dating back to 2007 identified fourteen varieties, dividing them into five groups according to either their scientific features or commercial features (for example colour or pattern).

The first group is the one of white marbles (statuario, ordinario, bianco), then we have the grey and veined ones (grigio, venato, zebrino), breccia ones (arabescato, calacatta, breccia rossa, fantastico), cipollino ones (cipollino) and historical ones (breccia di Seravezza, rosso rubino, nero di Colonnata). In addition to these, there are also the undetermined marbles.

The same research also took a census of the known commercial varieties: there are dozens of different categories. In this guide, the main fourteen ones of the five great groups (white, veined, breccia, cipollino and historical ones) will be listed.

 

White marbles

These marbles are the purest ones with the most homogenous composition: their colour is a white that may have various hues, from ivory to pearly. The statuario is a particularly precious large-grained ivory-coloured marble; it may have grey stains and it is used mainly for artistic purposes (sculptures). The bianco, with fine or medium grain, is almost always without stains or veins. The ordinario has a darkest white hue, tending to grey, and it may have stains of various sizes.

 

Grey and veined marbles

These are grey-coloured marbles or ones with flashy veins. The grigio is a fine or medium grain marble that may have various grey hues, with veins of different colours (grey, also dark grey, or white) that often have a regular orientation. The so-called “bardiglio” (a grey marble with subtle grey and white veins) belongs to the sub-typology of the grey marble. It was included in previous classifications as a separate typology and it is largely sold with this denomination still today. The veined marble is usually a white colour marble with medium grain and large grey stains, regular and less regular ones, which often create patterns, it may also have wide stains. The zebrino marble has a fine grain, it is white or light grey coloured, with large grey or greenish veins that recall the coat of a zebra.

Breccia marbles

The breccia marbles consist of combined rock fragments which may have different colours (grey, red, violet, green), thus giving the marble a very particular and refined appearance. The arabescato marbles consist of a limestone base with elements of pyrite, dolomite, quartz and other minerals which draw patterns resembling arabesques (hence the name), and they have a white or light grey colour. The calacatta marble is a white one with coloured inserts which go from yellow to green. The breccia rossa marbles consist of elements that colour the marble in a very peculiar way which may also reach the dark red or violet, whereas the fantastico marble, similar to the breccia rossa one, can be distinguished from it thanks to the deformed inserts that shape a more irregular pattern.

 

Cipollino marbles

It has been identified a unique type of cipollino marbles, which is defined “cipollino” indeed. It is an impure marble that, according to the type of impurity, may have the most diverse colours and patterns, influenced by the elements it consists of. Usually, it is green or grey-green, with large veins (resembling the striping of onions, cipolla in Italian) and fragments of quartz and calcite.

 

Historical marbles

The so-called “historical marbles” are quarried no more or with a very limited production, but they were used largely in the past. The breccia di Seravezza (also known as “breccia medicea”) is a grey-green, green or red marble, with inserts of different nature that give the marble a multicolour appearance. The rosso rubino marble is vivid red and it may be variously veined. To conclude, the nero di Colonnata is a very dark marble with a fine grain and a very regular structure.