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History – Marmorino is well known as a classic Venetian plaster; however, its origins are much older, dating to ancient Roman times. We can see evidence of it today in the villas of Pompei and in various Roman structures. In addition, it was also written about in Vitruvius’s “De Architectura”, a 1st Century B.C. history of Rome. Marmorino was rediscovered centuries later after the discovery of Vitruvius’s ancient treatise in the 15th century. This ‘new’ plaster conformed well to the aesthetic requirements dictated by the classical idea that in the 15th century had recently become fashionable in the Venetian lagoon area.
The first record of work being done with Marmorino is a building contract with the nuns of Santa Chiara of Murano in 1473. In this document, it is written that before the Marmorino could be applied, the wall had to be prepared wth the motor made of lime and “coccio pesto” (ground terra cotta). This “coccio pesto” was then excavated from tailings of bricks or recycled from old roof tiles.
At this point, to better understand the popularity of Marmorino in Venetian life, two facts need to be considered. The first is that in a city that extends over water, the transport of sand for making plaster and the disposal of tailings was and still is, a huge problem. So, the use of Marmorino was successful not only because the substrate was prepared using terra cotta scraps, but also the finish, Marmorino, was made with left-over stone and marble, which were in great abundance at the time. These ground discards were mixed with lime to create Marmorino. Besides, Marmorino and substrates made of “coccio pesto” resisted the ambient dampness of the lagoon better than almost any other plaster. The first because it is extremely breathable by virtue of the kind of lime used (the only lime which sets on exposure to air after losing excess water) and the second, because it contains terracotta which when added to lime makes the mixture hydraulic, that is, it is effective even in damp conditions (because it contains silica and aluminum, bases of modern cement and hydraulic lime preparations). The second consideration is that an aesthetically pleasing result could be achieved in an era dominated by the return of a classical Greco-Roman style, allowing less weight to be transmitted to the foundation when compared to the habit of covering facades wth the slabs of stone.
Usually Marmorino was white to imitate the stone of Istria which was most often used in Venetian construction, but was occasionally decorated with frescoes to imitate the marble, which Venetian merchants brought home from their voyages to the Orient. *In this fascinating period of the republic of Venice, merchants felt obliged to return home bearing precious, exotic marmorino marble as a tribute to the beauty of their own city.
Marmorino maintained its prestige for centuries until the end of the 1800’s, when interest in it faded and was considered only an economical solution to the marble. Only at the end of the 1970’s, thanks in part to the architect, Carlo Scrapa’s use of Marmorino, did this finishing technique return to the interest of the best modern architects.
About – For over 5000 years the use of lime in construction and decoration was the most common building material in most countries. It was used in combination with other local minerals such as volcanic pumice, marble flour, gypsum, cement, sands and clays to list the main fillers. The discovery of of firing limestone to produce hot lime revolutionized ancient building methods and came long before the Romans created cement. From this material lime putty or grassello was created to allow storage as a paste form without setting. The combination of hydrated lime and cement is still a mainstay of modern building construction. In the North American market it is the hottest trend with architects who specify this method of building for LEED approved projects.