Features of the "Murgian" stone
They were formed in various environmental contexts marked by considerable changes in the mechanisms of sedimentation and in the physical depositional parameters. This led to the genesis of rocks which are of a structurally varied nature.
The oldest terms of the carbonatic series constitute the fundamental framework of the region and the substrate of the Murgian zone. They are the most commonly used rocks in various sectors and in particular that of extraction.
In the areas in which the calcareous rocks emerge profusely, the particular Karst morphologies are more noticeable, whether on the small or the large scale. The exogenous agents which etch the carbonatic rocks trigger processes of disintegration varying in intensity and resulting in the well-known diffuse dolinas, sinkholes, track fields. On a smaller scale, the dissolving phenomena gives rise to rocky and extremely irregular surfaces with evident millimetric and centimetric cavities whose diffusion varies according to, among other factors, the presence of fossil ruins. The surfaces exposed to the exogenous agents have grey, brown, light brown-greyish colorations depending on the greater or lesser periods of exposure to and on the various forms of biological attack (lichens,fungus,etc.).
The Apulian carbonatic rocks are singular in structure, composition and chromatic variations. The litotipi are highly varied, some in very fine grain(micrites), while others are coarser and with varying degrees of presence of fossils or other allochemical constituents and they have various names such as, among others, calcareniti and biocalcareniti.
The carbonatic fine grain rocks are gifted with considerable consistency, low porosity and homogeneous structure. They are usually only slightly fractured and have uniform colour. As a natural raw material they are remarkably interesting for their high degree of workability, their chromatic characteristics and their uniqueness.
It’s sufficient to think of their architectonic applications which starting from megalithic époques flourished greatly in the Romanesque Baroque period showing their ability to pass the test of time in a truly exceptional manner.
(Prof. Antonio Paglionico Geomineralogic Department University of Bari)
The oldest terms of the carbonatic series constitute the fundamental framework of the region and the substrate of the Murgian zone. They are the most commonly used rocks in various sectors and in particular that of extraction.
In the areas in which the calcareous rocks emerge profusely, the particular Karst morphologies are more noticeable, whether on the small or the large scale. The exogenous agents which etch the carbonatic rocks trigger processes of disintegration varying in intensity and resulting in the well-known diffuse dolinas, sinkholes, track fields. On a smaller scale, the dissolving phenomena gives rise to rocky and extremely irregular surfaces with evident millimetric and centimetric cavities whose diffusion varies according to, among other factors, the presence of fossil ruins. The surfaces exposed to the exogenous agents have grey, brown, light brown-greyish colorations depending on the greater or lesser periods of exposure to and on the various forms of biological attack (lichens,fungus,etc.).
The Apulian carbonatic rocks are singular in structure, composition and chromatic variations. The litotipi are highly varied, some in very fine grain(micrites), while others are coarser and with varying degrees of presence of fossils or other allochemical constituents and they have various names such as, among others, calcareniti and biocalcareniti.
The carbonatic fine grain rocks are gifted with considerable consistency, low porosity and homogeneous structure. They are usually only slightly fractured and have uniform colour. As a natural raw material they are remarkably interesting for their high degree of workability, their chromatic characteristics and their uniqueness.
It’s sufficient to think of their architectonic applications which starting from megalithic époques flourished greatly in the Romanesque Baroque period showing their ability to pass the test of time in a truly exceptional manner.
(Prof. Antonio Paglionico Geomineralogic Department University of Bari)
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