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Carrara is a city in the Massa Carrara province of Tuscany, Italy, famous for the white or blue-gray marble quarried there. It is on the Lavensa river, some 60 miles west northwest of Florence. As of 1991, the population was 61,197 people.
In addition to the marble quarries, the city has accademies of sculpture and fine arts and a museum of statuaries and antiquities. The local marble is exported around the world, and marble from elsewhere is also fashioned and sculpted commercially here.
Carrara marble has been famous since the time of Ancient Rome; the Pantheon and Trajan's Column in Rome are constructed of it. Many famous sculptures of the Renaissance, such as Michelangelo's David, were carved from Carrara marble. Marble Arch in London is also made from this well regarded stone.
The close bond between Carrara and its famous marble quarries dates back to ancient times. The word "Carrara" likely comes from the ancient term "Kar" (stone). Ancient Romans would quarry the marble, load it onto ships at the port of Luni and take it to Rome by sea.
The municipality of Carrara was first established in 1235. Over the centuries it was ruled by Pisa (1235), Lucca (1322), Genoa (1329) and Milan (1343). After the death of Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan in 1477 Carrara was fought over by Tommaso Campogregoso, lord of Sarzana, and the Malaspina family.
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