A City of Marble: Urban Readings Through the Lens of a Material

This paper investigates marble as a culture-bearing material that has shaped architectural identity, urban form, and historical memory in Italy across different periods. Beyond its physical properties, marble is examined as a medium of power, symbolism, and cultural continuity. Through three historical examples—the reuse of ancient marble in the Middle Ages, the role of marble in Renaissance architectural theory and practice, and its reinterpretation in twentieth-century Italian architecture—the paper explores how marble has served as a vehicle for relating to, referencing, and reinterpreting the past. Drawing on figures such as Pliny the Elder, Leon Battista Alberti, Luigi Moretti, and Carlo Scarpa, the study demonstrates how marble connects local building traditions, political ideologies, craftsmanship, and material innovation. The paper argues that marble functions not merely as a building material but as an enduring agent of cultural transmission, linking architecture, landscape, and collective memory across time.