You’ve heard of the Emerald City and the City of Gold, but have you heard of the City of Marble? Located at the base of the Apuan Alps in northern Tuscany, Carrara is a charmingly small city with a big reputation. Known across the globe as “The White City of Marble,” Carrara is the source of the world’s finest marble. It is so pure and beautiful that it’s been sought after by emperors, popes, and artists for over two thousand years. We are drawn to this crossroads of nature, history, and artistry, offering the rare opportunity to walk in the footsteps of greats like Michelangelo, marvel at marble mountains, and discover a city carved completely from this white stone.
Geography
Carrara is located in the Italian province of Massa-Carrara, just a few miles from the Ligurian Sea (approximately 35 minutes from the Cinque Terre). The city is dramatically set within the Apuan Alps, where the marble is naturally carved into the mountainsides like glaciers. The exposed marble faces are so white they shimmer under the Tuscan sun, creating a beautiful optical illusion of ice. We feel the contrast between the green Tuscan hills, the pure white stone, and the blue sea below makes this region like nowhere else we have ever seen in the world. The area’s marble is a metamorphic rock formed from limestone, subjected to intense heat and pressure over millions of years. The resulting stone is nearly 100% pure calcite, making it highly sought after for its strength, workability, and stunning aesthetic.
History of Carrara
Carrara’s history is just as unique and beautiful as its marble. Quarrying began in Roman times, with Emperor Augustus establishing one of the first organized extraction operations from the area. Much of ancient Rome, such as its temples, statues, and monuments, were constructed using Carrara marble.
The Renaissance brought a new height of desirability for this artistic delicacy. No one used Carrara marble more famously than Michelangelo, who personally traveled into the mountains to hand-select the blocks for his masterpieces, including for the iconic statue of David (currently residing at the Accademia in Florence). Legend has it that he could see the “soul” of the sculpture within the marble slab before ever touching it with a chisel. Over centuries, Carrara’s stone has shaped not only art but also architecture. Marble from this area has been included in the building of the Pantheon in Rome, London’s Marble Arch, and parts of the Oslo Opera House.
Best Way to Visit
Carrara is far more than just its marble showcase to marvel at. The historic center features beautiful stone buildings, narrow medieval streets, and sculptors’ workshops that have maintained their charm for hundreds of years. One of our favorite things to do is add a visit to the Accademia di Belle Arti di Carrara (Academy of Fine Arts), founded in 1769 by Maria Teresa Cybo-Malaspina, Duchess of Massa. The school continues to attract artists from all around the world to come and study in this sculptor’s paradise. The nearby Museo Civico del Marmo (Marble Museum) is another highlight, where you can learn about the geological, historical, and artistic journey of Carrara’s precious stone.
Another unique experience to accent your visit is a guided tour into the marble quarries themselves, some open-air, others tunneled deep into the mountain. Ride 4×4’s into active sites and learn how massive marble blocks are cut with diamond wire and transported using techniques that combine ancient tradition with modern logistics.
*Each summer, Carrara hosts the “Carrara Marble Weeks” (typically from mid-June to late September), an international event that turns the city into an open-air gallery of contemporary sculpture, installation art, and performance. It’s a testament to how the ancient art of stone carving continues to this day.
Colonnata: Where Marble Meets Gastronomy
Located nearby, just a 15-minute drive from Carrara, is Colonnata, a tiny stone village nestled in the heart of this marble district. It is here that centuries of quarrying and culinary traditions converge in one of Italy’s most unique delicacies: Lardo di Colonnata.
This “melt-in-your-mouth” cured pork fat has been produced in Colonnata since Roman times, when quarry workers needed a cheap calorie-rich food to sustain them through long hardworking days in these mountains. The pork is hand-trimmed and layered with sea salt, garlic, rosemary, pepper, and other herbs, and then is placed inside basins carved from the Carrara marble. The marble’s natural temperature and humidity help the meat cure slowly and evenly over 6 to 12 months, which results in a silky texture and incomparable flavor that makes it famous throughout the world.
Today, lardo is no longer quarryman’s food, it’s a protected specialty (IGP certified; Protected Geographical Indication) and a beloved part of the region’s identity. Sliced paper-thin and served on warm bread or alongside local cheeses, it’s a must-try for any “foodie”. While in Colonnata, we recommend you visit one of the small artisan producers or dine in some of the rustic trattorias with beautiful panoramic views of this incredible region. During this journey via your stomach, enjoy this lesson on how a humble village carved its place into gastronomic history- quite literally in marble!
