Building and decoration material
Collections of ancient marbles
These Collections include the collection realized by Federico Pescetto in the period around 1870 and the one collected by Pio De Santis a few years earlier. They consist in “ancient marbles” originating from archaeological excavations and ancient quarries mostly dating back to the Roman age. Catalogues of the two collections were published as an attachment to the Geological Office Guide of 1904, prepared for the Universal Exhibition of St. Louis. These collections, especially the former, are considered to be among the most important ones in the world due to the quantity, variety and dimension of the finds. They are currently exhibited at APAT’s headquarters on Via Curtatone, in Rome.
The “Pescetto” Collection includes 1,036 items (of which 522 are considered “antiques”). They have a rectangular parallelepiped shape with edges measuring 20 × 10 × 5 cm, polished on five faces. The considerable dimensions of the finds make them the largest known worldwide for this type of collection. The Collection was sold to the National Geological Service by Pescetto’s heirs.
The “De Santis” Collection is composed of 322 items (of which 262 are considered “antiques”). They have a rectangular parallelepiped shape with edges measuring 13.5 × 9.3 × 2.5 cm, polished on five faces. This Collection was purchased at the pawnshop of Rome.
Regional collections of building and decoration material
These were established following the Royal Decree of 24 March, 1872, by initiative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Following the achievement of Italy’s Unity, the decree provided to carry out a census of mineral areas in Italy. To this purpose, anybody who was managing a quarry or was about to open one was asked to send to the Geological Office some representative specimens of the extracted material.
The Regional Collection of decoration material in small blocks includes 945 specimens having a rectangular parallelepiped shape with edges generally measuring 20 × 10 × 5 cm, which are mainly polished on various faces. The first group of this collection is described in the Catalogue prepared for the International Exhibition of Vienna in 1873.
The Regional Collection of building material includes 2,489 specimens, mainly of cubic shape with edges measuring 10 cm.
Collections of Italian marbles
The Collection of marble slabs consists of 174 specimens cut into large slabs measuring 100 × 50 × 2 cm. They are mirror polished on one of the two main faces. The first group of the collection, composed of marbles of the Apuan Alps, is illustrated in the Catalogue prepared for the Universal Exhibition of Antwerp of 1885. It was then integrated with specimens from other parts of the country, illustrated in the Catalogue prepared for the Regional Exhibition of Tuscany of 1887. Almost half of the Collection’s specimens are marbles of the Apuan Alps.
The Collection of marble blocks consists of 118 specimens cut into rectangular parallelepiped shapes of unusual dimensions (50 × 25 × 15 cm). They are polished on at least one face. Almost half of the specimens are marbles of the Apuan Alps.
Collection of artistic and ornamental samples
Compared to the collections of Italian marbles, this Collection is of contemporary age. It includes 48 marble processing samples. These are balustrades, columns, capitals, frames, a table, a vase, a bust and a biochrome floor. The processed stone material comes from different Italian mineral districts. The samples were sent to the International Exhibition of Vienna in 1873 and to the Universal Exhibition of Paris in 1878. They are currently exhibited at the APAT headquarters on Via Curtatone, in Rome.
Collection of foreign building and decoration material
This Collection includes 147 specimens that were donated or acquired following exchanges that took place during international scientific or commercial events. The finds generally have a parallelepipedal or tile shape. The largest part of the Collection (100 parallelepipedal blocks) is made up of material originating from Japan, which was donated during the Universal Exhibition of Paris in 1878.
Other collections
Collection of Apricena (48 specimens);
Commercial Collection of marbles (41 specimens);
Collection of ardesia and quartzites (25 specimens);
Collection of tufa, travertine and peperine stones (16 specimens);
Collection of tiles (55 specimens).