Inside Italy's R15 billion mountains that produce more tons of marble than anywhere else on Earth
Carrara marble is one of the most prestigious marbles in the world. A slab can cost up to R6,000 per square meter, and over history, it has been used for some remarkable buildings. Think of the Pantheon in Rome or Michelagelo's iconic statue, David. The luxury stone comes the Apuan Alps, a mountain range in northern Tuscany that stretches for 58 km and reaches 2,000 meters high. Marble has been carved here since the Ancient Roman times, and because of its millennial history, the Carrara quarries have produced more marble than any other place on Earth. The market as a whole is worth over R15.5 billion and produces 3.6 million tonnes of marble every year, with 13,000 people involved. The quarries were even featured in a James Bond movie, with Daniel Craig driving an Aston Martin DBS up the marble slopes.