Discover Carrara – The City of Marble

Carrara is a small city famously known as the “City of Marble”. Located in the Italian province of Tuscany, Carrara is not that far up north from Forte dei Marmi. The city of marble is remarkable for its different types of white marble, modern sculptures, and widely known masterpieces. While Carrara is known for its white Calacatta marble, it has also provided marble for some of the world’s greatest sculptors, such as Michelangelo and Henry Moore.

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The word Carrara comes from the ancient pre-latin word “kar”, which means stone. This wonderful, but not widely known area to tourists, has a long historic tradition connected with different types of white marble. The prestigious fame and international recognition comes from the production of what is considered the finest white marble in the world. Whoever visits the city of marble, will notice sculptures, doors, flower vases, all made from marble. Did you know that the Duomo, Carrara’s stunning marble cathedral is almost entirely built out of marble? Impressive, isn’t it!

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While visiting, I stumbled upon a recreation of Michelangelo’s David statue, re-imagined as a contemporary art sculpture. Created by Studi d’Arte Cave Michelangelo, the contemporary art sculpture is covered with colorful tattoos and lettering.

For the famous statue of David, Michelangelo used the rare, prestigious statuary white Carrara marble which can only be found in certain quarries in the Apuan Alps of Carrara. Have you ever wondered how tall Michelangelo’s David statue is? The statue is 5 meters tall and weighs more than 6 tons or more than 13,000 pounds.

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The Piazza Alberica is in the heart of the city. It’s a typical Italian style piazza, with a contemporary art sculpture centerpiece and is surrounded by historical buildings which belonged to the historical noble families of Carrara. While sightseeing, don’t miss the opportunity to take a moment and enjoy the local bars by ordering an afternoon Spritz, a famous Italian wine-based cocktail.

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A further walk through the narrow streets of the city shows off the monumentality of Carrara, and you will notice small marble sculptures and fixtures everywhere. Exploring the city lead me to a stationary store selling the prestigious Aurora fountain pens.

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