Carrara

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For other uses, see Carrara (disambiguation).

Comune di Carrara
Image:Carrara-Stemma.png Municipal coat of arms
Country	Image:Flag of Italy.svg Italy
Region	Tuscany
Province	Massa-Carrara (MS)
Mayor	Giulio Conti (since June 2002)

Elevation	100 m
Area	71 km²
Population
- Total (as of December 31, 2004)	65,296
- Density	923/km²
Time zone	CET, UTC+1
Coordinates	44°04.75′N 10°06.00′E
Gentilic	Carraresi
Dialing code	0585
Postal code	54033
Frazioni	Codena, Bedizzano, Bergiola, Colonnata, Miseglia, Torano, Sorgnano, Avenza, Marina di Carrara, Castelpoggio, Fontia, Gragnana, Noceto
Patron	San Ceccardo
- Day	June 16
Website: www.comune.carrara.ms.it

Carrara is a city in the province of Massa-Carrara (Tuscany, Italy), famous for the white or blue-gray marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione river, some 100 km west-northwest of Florence.

1 History
2 Main sights
3 Economy and culture
4 Famous Carraresi
5 Twin cities
6 External links

[edit] History

The municipality of Carrara was first established in 1235.

Over the centuries it was ruled by Pisa (1235), Lucca (1322), Genoa (1329) and Milan (1343). After the death of Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan in 1477, Carrara was fought over by Tommaso Campogregoso, lord of Sarzana, and the Malaspina family.

Carrara and Massa formed the Duchy of Massa and Carrara from the 15th to the 19th century.

[edit] Main sights

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Cathedral (12th century).
Ducal Palace (16th century), now seat of the Fine Arts Academy.

[edit] Economy and culture

Carrara marble has been famous since the time of Ancient Rome; the Pantheon and Trajan's Column in Rome are constructed of it. Many famous sculptures of the Renaissance, such as Michelangelo's David, were carved from Carrara marble. For Michelangelo at least, Carrara marble was valued above all else, except perhaps that of his own quarry in Pietrasanta. Marble Arch in London and the Duomo di Siena are also made from this well regarded stone.

In addition to the marble quarries, the city has academies of sculpture and fine arts and a museum of statuaries and antiquities. The local marble is exported around the world, and marble from elsewhere is also fashioned and sculpted commercially here.

An international stone and machinery exhibition (CarraraMarmotec) takes place in Carrara, the heart of a unique marble district. The stone tradition meets with the most up-to-date offers of the stone industry. All this, in deep connection with the territory and a background made of more then 1,000 companies working within the sector and almost 100 quarries.

Image:Carrara01.jpg

The derivation for the word "Carrara" likely comes from the ancient term "Kar" (stone). Ancient Romans quarried the marble, loaded it onto ships at the port of Luni and took it to Rome by sea. For Saint Girolamo, the name Carrara derives from “CAR” that means "wagons" and from “IARA” that means "Moon", so is the “City of the Moon on the wagons”.

Another hypothesis (Repetti) is that the term is derived from the French “CAREERS”, which in turn is borrowed from “CARRARIAE”, a Latin term meaning quarry. Carrara may derive from a preroman term : “KAIR” (celtic) or to one from Liguria: “KAR”, that means "stone" and therefore: “CAR+ARIA” meaning “PLACE OF STONES”; or a place in which many stones are found. One studious Danish derives Carrara from an Etruscan term of Egyptian origin: “KAR” (nail head) and “RHA” (God of the sun). “KAR+RHA” means “RHA NAIL HEAD, TEMPLE OF the SUN”.