Red 'Rouge de Caune' marble fireplace mantle - marble

Description

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Superb red 'Rouge de Caune' marble fireplace mantel in Louis XIV style, from the 19th century.The cast iron insert is included. The mantel shelf is now cut down to size as can be seen on photo n°10.

Additional information

Red marble from Caunes in the Minervois region (Aude) or more scientifically called “Incarnat Turquin”. Excellent quality of marble, extracted since Antiquity and profusely during the reign of Louis XIV, when these quarries became the Kings quarries, and the marble exclusively used for the royal buildings. Today, the quarries are still active, but the color is faded and lacking contrast. The columns of the Carrousel du Louvre Triumphal Arc, those of the portico of the Plant Garden in Toulouse (Jardin des Plantes) were carved in this marble, as were numerous fireplace mantels in the Versailles palace.