Genoa Exhibition Reveals the History of Roman Luna, City of Marble

A new exhibition in Genoa, titled 'Pietra di Luna. Il marmo di Luni e l’Impero di Roma,' explores the history of Luna, a Roman colony founded in 177 BCE, and its crucial role in supplying marble from the nearby Apuan Alps (Carrara) to Rome. Curated by Matteo Cadario, Marcella Mancusi, and Antonella Traverso, the show is organized by Musei Nazionali di Genova with the Museo nazionale e parco archeologico di Luni and the Museo Nazionale Romano. It traces how Luna's marble enabled Augustus to transform Rome from brick to marble, declaring cultural and economic supremacy. The exhibition features artifacts including a rare relief of stonecutters, a statue of a commander possibly depicting Augustus, the 'throne of the Alessandri,' and a newly discovered portrait of Augustus from Isernia. It also examines the economic and ideological value of marble, its use in public buildings across the empire, and the eventual decline of quarrying after the 3rd century CE, only to resume in medieval and Renaissance times. The exhibition runs at Palazzo Reale in Genoa.