The historic center of Lecce, the capital of the Salento region in Puglia, is built of a soft white limestone that is easily carved.
Lecce met the Baroque on its own terms, with the local stone used both on the exterior and in the interior.
Unfortunately, the stone is so soft that it erodes easily.
Fossil shells can be seen in worn surfaces.
Over time, the white stone turns yellow. In the past the stone surfaces would have been plastered, but the plaster also deteriorated.
CREATION
DESTRUCTION
Join Becky’s July Squares: Tree Squares. Only one week remains.
Trunks from giant sequoias or possibly redwoods from Sequoia National Park in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Detail of art work hanging in Kaiser Permanente Anaheim lobby, glass and porcelain, Dance of Life, Irina Charny, 2012
The Pope’s Throne in the apse of the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran.
My last stop on my five weeks in Italy. The Archbasilica of St. John Lateran is the Cathedral of Rome, the seat of the Pope as the Bishop of Rome. The basilica, on the site of the oldest church in Rome, was rebuilt or redesigned a number of times. Sections of the apse mosaic date to the 4th-6th centuries. The mosaic stonework on the walls and floor is medieval.
