Nº 09

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Nº 09 / 17 · Marble · Italy

Calacatta Viola

A mosaic laid by the earth itself: cream, rose and grey, set in wine red.

Rock type: Marble breccia
Origin: Apuan Alps, Tuscany · Italy
Surface: polished
Hardness (Mohs): 3–4

Close-up

The same photo at three magnifications – this is how the pattern looks up close.

Every veneer is one of a kind. The image shows the stone; your piece will look different.

The story

Calacatta Viola comes from the Apuan Alps above Carrara, the same mountains Michelangelo took the blocks for his sculptures from. Marble has been quarried here since Roman times. Quarrymen once lowered the blocks, weighing many tonnes, down the slopes on wooden sledges and ropes, a deadly trade they called lizzatura.

The stone itself tells of a catastrophe in slow motion: as the Alps folded up, pale marble shattered into angular shards, and iron- and manganese-bearing rock cemented them together again, in wine red and violet, like Chianti between porcelain. Polished, it is a mosaic no one ever laid. Every veneer is a composition of its own.

Properties

Polished, deep, with veins that never repeat. In the stone trade almost every polishable stone is called marble – we tell you what it really is geologically.

Family: Marble
Hardness (Mohs): 3–4
Processing: sawn, ground, polished
Surface: polished

For comparison: fingernail 2.5 · glass 5.5 · quartz 7. Values apply to the rock family.

Care

Clean with the Stone Cleaner. If the surface looks dull, the Marble Liquid Polish brings back the shine. Wipe off acids such as lemon juice, vinegar or wine promptly.

Care instructions →

Frequently asked questions about Calacatta Viola

Where does Calacatta Viola come from?

Calacatta Viola comes from Apuan Alps, Tuscany · Italy. Rock type: Marble breccia.

Is the Calacatta Viola at ROXXLYN real stone?

Yes. Calacatta Viola is real natural stone, not a print and not a film. Because every piece is cut from the block, every grain is unique.

What does Calacatta Viola feel like?

Calacatta Viola is polished: smooth, with depth and shine, which brings out the pattern of the stone especially clearly.

How do I care for Calacatta Viola?

Clean with the Stone Cleaner. If the surface looks dull, the Marble Liquid Polish brings back the shine. Wipe off acids such as lemon juice, vinegar or wine promptly. Care instructions

What happens if Calacatta Viola breaks?

Every piece comes with a Stone Passport. If the stone breaks within 12 months of delivery, we make the same model in the same type of stone again at half price, once per passport, plus shipping. More about the Stone Passport