Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sun, sand and sea - essential components of a holiday at a beach resort of the Versilia
The Lunigiana
1
Road map
A1
.
world. In Carrara itself there
are numerous showrooms and
workshops where the marble
is sawn into sheets or sculpted
into statues and ornaments.
Many of the workshops wel-
come visitors. You can also
discover more about the tech-
niques of crafting marble at the
Museo Civico del Marmo
.
Carrara's
Duomo
uses the
local marble to good effect in
its Pisan-Romanesque façade
featuring a rose window. In
the same square is the house
where Michelangelo used to
stay on his visits to buy marble
for his sculptures. The façade
is marked by a plaque and by
carvings of the sculptor's tools.
Tour buses from Carrara
regularly visit the quarries at
Colonnata and at Fantiscritti,
where a museum displays
various marble quarrying
techniques. You can also drive
there, following the numerous
signs that say “Cave di Marmo”.
E
Museo Civico del Marmo
Viale XX Settembre
.
Tel
0585 84 57
46.
V
@
Aulla.
n
Via
Salucci 5, Aulla (0187 42 14 39).
The Lunigiana (Land of the
Moon) area is named after
the port of Luni - so called
because of the moon-like
luminescence of the marble
shipped from here in Roman
times. From the 16th century
onwards, the Dukes of Mala-
spina fortified villages against
banditry and built castles at
Massa, Fosdinovo, Aulla,
Fivizzano and Verrucola.
At Pontremoli, the 14th-
century Castello del Piagnaro
houses the
Museo delle
Statue-Stele Lunigianesi
,
which shows prehistoric carved
stone figures from the region.
Oct-Apr: 9am-5pm
Mon-Sat; May-Sep: 10am-6pm
Mon-Sat (Jul & Aug: to 8pm).
#
&
R
Duomo
Piazza del Duomo
.
#
daily.
The Versilia
3
Road map
B2
.
V
@
Viareggio.
n
Viale Carducci 10, Viareggio
(0584 96 22 33).
www
.
aptversilia.it
The Versilia, sometimes
called the Tuscan Riviera
because of the many beach
resorts that line this 30-km
(18-mile) strip, stretches
from Marina di Carrara in the
north down to Marina di
Museo delle Statue-Stele
Lunigianesi
Castello del Piagnaro, Pontremoli.
Tel
0187 83 14 39.
E
Apr-Sep:
9am-1pm, 2:30-6:30pm Tue-Sun;
Oct-Mar: 9:30am-12:30pm,
2:30-5:30pm Tue-Sun.
#
&
Carrara
2
Road map
B1
.
*
70,000.
V
@
Piazza Cesare Battisti 1
(0585 64 14 22).
n
(
Mon.
Carrara is world famous for
its white marble. The 300 or
so quarries near the town
date to Roman times, making
this the oldest industrial site
in continuous use in the
A quarry in the marble-bearing hills around Carrara
