“Marmora” project: characterisation and provenance on historical marbles in the Apulia artistic and archaeological sites (Southern italy)

MARMORA is a research project designed by PugliaMia, Association for study, conservation and valorisation of Cultural Heritage of Apulia (southern Italy). The main topic of the project is the characterization and provenance of historical stone materials, in particular Roman marbles, employed and after reused in subsequent periods, in artistic, archaeological and architectural heritage of the region. The project aims to improve the scientific knowledge of these historical evidences and to guarantee their better conservation, valorisation and enjoyment. In cooperation with the Post Graduate School for Cultural Heritage and Landscape of the Polytechnic of Bari and with the Geoenvironmental and Earth Science Department of the University of Bari Aldo Moro, detailed studies about mosaics of St. Nicola’s Basilica and marble altars in the churches of the historical centre of Bari have already begun. The phases include 3-dimensional representation of artwork thanks to a photogrammetric acquisition, characterisation of materials, mainly in comparison with the most famous and complete catalogues of collections of ancient stones and marbles, and restoring and conservation suggestions. Preliminary results suggested the use and reuse of rare and meaningful marbles in the considered sites, highlighting their significant relationship with the local history. The adopted multi-disciplinary approach had proved to be a powerful way to study of marble artworks, which allowed to lay the groundwork for the future MARMORA focusses.