The Kolmarden serpentine marble in Sweden: a stone

found both in castles and people’s homes

ANDERS WIKSTROM1 & DOLORES PEREIRA2*1Skrikhult, S 60570 Svartinge, Sweden

2Department of Geology, Universidad de Salamanca, Plaza de la Merced s/n,

37008 Salamanca, Spain

*Corresponding author (e-mail: mdp@usal.es)

Abstract: The Kolmarden serpentine marble is a well known Svecofennian marble from Sweden,and here it is proposed as a possible ‘Global Heritage Stone Resource’. This marble matches thenewly proposed designation ideally, since for many years it has been used in the construction ofmajor historical buildings, as well as famous buildings of national and international importance.The Kolmarden marble continues to be quarried today.

Serpentinites are commercially known as ‘greenmarble’, although they differ both in mineralogy andgeochemistry from real marbles (Navarro et al.2013). Kolmarden marble is a green serpentinemarble extracted in quarries located in that area.This rock is not comparable to the internationallywell known serpentinites around the world, and thisis one of the important reasons for its complete de-scription in this paper.

Kolmarden is a large forest located around100 km SW of Stockholm, in the northeastern partof the province of Ostergotland in Sweden. The vil-lage of Marmorbruket (where the factory and majorquarries are situated) is close to and north of a majorfault scarp defining the southern limit of the Kol-marden area. South of the fault, which is probablyof Tertiary age, the bay of Braviken on the BalticSea leads westwards to the city of Norrkoping.

The green serpentine marble has also been quar-ried at other places in south-central Sweden (e.g.Gropptorp, Brannlyckan), although these depositshave never reached the status of the Kolmardenmarble. The marble has been used since as far backas the 13th century, as documented by a manufac-tured piece from that time (Fig. 1). No other datahave been found from between that time and the17th century, when the stone enjoyed more exten-sive use mainly due to the construction of the Royalcastles in Stockholm. In 1669 Queen Hedvig Eleo-nora asked the Belgian sculptor Nicolaus Millichto decorate the newly built Drottningholm Castle(outside Stockholm, where the Royal family nowlives). Some years later Millich was privilegedto be able to use the marble in Kolmarden, and thequarrying started. In 1699 the Royal Castle in

central Stockholm burned down and when thenew Royal Castle was built during the 18th cen-tury, the Kolmarden marble was used in consider-able amounts. Following this boom in the use ofthe natural stone, the industry underwent many upsand downs in ensuing years. Sometimes, the quar-ries were abandoned for long periods, partly becausethe owners went bankrupt.

Two main productive periods have been docu-mented. One was at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury, when the stone was used for the constructionof important buildings inside and outside Sweden.The other one was from the end of the 19th centuryto the middle of the 20th century. No produc-tion numbers were recorded in the 18th century.In 1907, c. 13 500 tonnes of both polished and rawblocks were registered. In 1951, c. 3000 tonneswere produced. During 1962, which was duringthe peak period of this natural stone industry, pro-duction of 46 500 tonnes was recorded. Most pub-lications about the Kolmarden serpentine marbleare written in Swedish (e.g. Asklund 1955; Elgeskog1955; Lindgren 2012), and therefore not much isknown by the international public. Here we presenta proposal for this Swedish marble as a ‘GlobalHeritage Stone Resource’ (GHSR).

Geology at Kolmarden

The age of green Kolmarden serpentine marble isaround 1900 Ma (Svecofennian). As seen from thegeological map and cross-sections (Wikstrom, 1979;Figs 2 & 3), it is found in eastward-dipping cross-folded, horseshoe-shaped synforms. Surrounding

From: Pereira, D., Marker, B. R., Kramar, S., Cooper, B. J. & Schouenborg, B. E. (eds) 2015. Global HeritageStone: Towards International Recognition of Building and Ornamental Stones. Geological Society, London,Special Publications, 407, 49–55. First published online January 28, 2015, http://dx.doi.org/10.1144/SP407.22# 2015 The Author(s). Published by The Geological Society of London. All rights reserved.For permissions: http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/permissions. Publishing disclaimer: www.geolsoc.org.uk/pub_ethics

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gneisses are mainly medium- to high-grade amphi-bolite facies migmatites. A strong contrast in com-petence between the marble and the surroundinggneisses existed during the deformation stage, andconsiderable plastic flow took place in the marble.

The red migmatitic gneisses are tentativelyplaced at the bottom of the local stratigraphy andare mainly interpreted as sedimentary reworkedrhyolites, partly altered hydrothermally. Horizonsof almost pure microcline rocks are encountered.Minor, economically unimportant iron ores are

also found in the vicinity. This assemblage ofrocks is similar to what is found in the ore-bearingBergslagen district in south-central Sweden, andthis leads to the assumption that the lime silicatesin the marble (stratigraphically above the red gneis-ses) have mainly a skarn character. This feature wasoriginally described in the Bergslagen area (e.g.Meinert et al. 2005).

From the mineralogical point of view, besidescalcite and serpentine the marble contains lowpercentages of diopside, tremolite, quartz and

Fig. 1. Baptismal font from the 13th century. This is the first recognized object manufactured from the marble. Photo:Kerstin M. Lindgren.

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phlogopite. The green serpentine is generally sec-ondary to diopside. Layers of white (iron-poor)diopside/tremolite occur in the marble. Masonsused to call them ‘block-ice’, since they were con-sidered a nuisance in production.

At the top of the local stratigraphy a grey garnet-sillimanite-cordierite veined gneiss of fairly uncon-troversial sedimentary character can be found.

The Kolmarden natural stone

Kolmarden marble is a green serpentine marble(one of the hardest marbles in the world) that wasused as early as the 13th century, as seen in a baptis-mal font (see below). This natural stone is alsoknown by other names such ‘Green SwedishMarble’ and ‘Ringborg Green’ (the latter after the

Fig. 2. Part of an unpublished bedrock map of the Marble area made by Bror Asklund (around 1940). Blue representscrystalline limestone (marble); light green, technically useful marble. Symbols: Filled circle ¼ quarries in production,Cross ¼ inactive quarries (some are water filled or earth covered)

Fig. 3. East–west and north–south structural profiles; cross sections in Figure 2 (Asklund 1955).

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name of the owner of the quarries at the beginningof the 20th century). Approximately two thirds ofthe output was exported in the most productiveperiods, and many important buildings made ofthis material can be found around the world, or atleast incorporate it in their interiors. Apart frommajor projects, abundant small-scale purchases foruse in floor paving, stairs, etc. took place over theyears. The town archives of the nearby city of Norr-koping holds documents covering the activitiesrelated to the stone that fill 92 m bookshelves.

Over the years, between 40 and 50 quarries havebeen operated with varying degrees of success. Thenumber of workers varied from around 20 duringthe 18th century to c. 150 when the industry closed.The largest quarry (‘number one’) was operated in asheared part of the southern fold limb and showsplanar structures. The shearing has resulted in astone almost devoid of fractures. The huge pillarsseen in the library of Leeds University (Figs 4 &5) are an example of the use of such stone. Thisquarry was operated to a maximum depth of 190 m.It has been described as resembling a steeply dip-ping ‘soccer field’.

The marble occurring in the other (smaller) quar-ries is folded in complicated patterns. Each quarry ischaracterized by its own green colour, and skilled

workers can often quickly tell which quarry aspecific stone comes from, sometimes even fromwhich part of a given quarry.

It was mainly a political decision at the end ofthe 1960s to invest large amounts of money in thebuilding of huge houses (the so-called ‘Million Pro-gram’) in the suburbs of major cities that finallykilled the industry. During the last years of activity,production was so extensive that one finds thismarble on stairs, bathroom floors, etc in ‘humble’houses built in the middle of the century all overthe country. In spite of this increased efficiency,the stone finally became too expensive and oper-ations in the quarries finally ceased in the 1970s.However, in recent years a renewed interest in thestone has resulted in a small-scale operation (byBorghamn Stenforadling AB) in one of the quarriesof the northern fold limb. No quarrying activities arenow seen in the Marmorbruket area, but a museumof the industry has been opened there.

GHSR Nomination/Citation requirements

For the purpose of GHSR nomination, the HeritageStone Task Group (HSTG) Terms of Reference statethat citations shall contain specific information

Fig. 4. Reading room in the library of Leeds University (built in the 1930s). The pillars were taken in one piece inthe quarry, then cut into three for the turning lathe and finally restored in the building in the original position with therock pattern preserved. Photo courtesy of the University of Leeds.

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(Cooper et al. 2013). Moreover, the natural stonenominated should have most of the followingattributes:

(1) historic use for a period of at least 50 years;(2) wide-ranging geographic application;(3) use in significant public or industrial projects;(4) common recognition as a cultural icon, poten-

tially including an association with nationalidentity or a significant individual contribu-tion to architecture;

(5) ongoing availability of material for quarrying;(6) potential benefits (cultural, scientific, archi-

tectural, environmental and/or commercial)arising from the GHSR designation.

Kolmarden serpentine marble meets all these stipu-lations. Consequently, in order to nominate it as aGHSR the following definitive details are provided.

Required fields for nomination

Formal Name: Kolmarden serpentine marble orKolmarden marble (Swedish: Kolmardsmarmor).

Other Names: ‘Green Swedish Marble’ and ‘Ring-borg Green.’

Place of Origin: Kolmarden, Sweden.Resource Location: This building stone, desig-

nated ‘Kolmarden marble’, has been quarriedwithin and in the surroundings of the village ofMarmorbruket in the Kolmarden area.

Fig. 5. One of the pillars in the quarry before delivery to Leeds University. The pillars were taken out in one piece fromthe quarry, then cut into three pieces for the turning lathe, and then finally put together again in the original position.Photo from Christer Ericsons private collection.

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Quarrying: Extensive quarrying operations haveexisted in Kolmarden since the 17th century.The Kolmarden marble is currently quarried ina smaller open pit at the Oxaker farm, about1 km north of the Marmorbruket village.

Petrographic Name: Serpentine marble.Colour: Different shades of green.Natural Variability: From light sage green, mot-

tled with white, to a somewhat deeper tone, withflowered markings of dark olive.

Suitability: A durable freestone that can be used forindoor work.

Stratigraphy/Geology: See above.Commercial Designations: Kolmarden serpentine

marble; Swedish green marble.Physical and Mechanical Properties (from the

quarry now in operation):† Water Absorption (%): 0.1† Density (kg/m3): 2720† Compressive Strength (MPa): 168† Flexural Strength (MPa): 17.9

Vulnerability and Maintenance of Supply: Kol-marden serpentine marble is only developed atthe surface in Kolmarden and will continue tobe mined, with planning permission, until 2025.Reserves through mining at the current rate ofextraction represent several hundred years of pro-duction. The present production rate is around

500 m3 per year, but demand is steadily increas-ing due to reparation and restoration activities.Since the natural variation in the marble is fairlyhigh among the different quarries, and becauseonly one quarry is in operation, problems ofavailability may arise.

Historical use

The Kolmarden marble was used as far back as the13th century, reaching a peak of popularity duringthe 17th century. The stone has been used for majorarchitectural buildings of Swedish national signifi-cance, especially in Stockholm. During the 19thand 20th centuries the natural stone was in extensiveuse all over the world.

Buildings (with date of construction in brackets):† Stockholm;

W Drottningholm Castle (17th century)W Royal Palace (18th century)W Opera HouseW Natural History Museum (1866)W National Museum (early 19th century)W Rosendal Castle (early 19th century)W Matchstick Palace (1929–1931)W Stockholm Town Hall (where the Nobel prize

reception takes place) (1923).

Fig. 6. Bathtub made in one piece for Aurora DeGeer (1753–1806), who lived in the Finspang castle in south-centralSweden. Photo: Kerstin M. Lindgren.

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† Other places in Europe and America;W Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly (1812), demolished

in 1905.W Copenhagen Town hall (1892–1905)W Paris Opera house (1875)W Manchester Consumption Hospital (1875)W Liverpool New Cathedral (1902)W London Coliseum Theatre (1904)W Strand Palace Hotel, London (1909)W South Kensington Post Office (1909)W Royal Insurance Company Offices, Lincoln

(1906)W Uppsala University main building (late 19th

century – middle 20th century)W Geneva League of Nations building (late 19th

century – middle 20th century)W Leeds University Library (late 19th century –

middle 20th century)W New York Rockefeller Centre (late 19th

century – middle 20th century).

Other Uses:

† Baptismal font (13th century). This is thefirst recognized object manufactured from themarble (Fig. 5).

† Bathtub made in one piece for Aurora Taube(1753–1806) (Fig. 6).

† Pulpit and altar rails in All Souls Roman Catho-lic Church, Petersborough (1912).

† Candlestick at the high altar in the Abbey of OurLady of Tongerlo, Belgium (1936) (http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2012/07/the-high-altar-in-abbey-of-our-lady-of.html, last visitedAugust 15, 2013).

Conclusions

Kolmarden serpentine marble meets all the require-ments to be considered for nomination as a GHSR.This consideration would be of great importancefor the maintenance of the quarrying industry ofthe area at a time when the construction sectoris somewhat endangered. It would also preserve

activity in the long term, because from the timethat quarrying started to the present, there havebeen many periods in which no activity at all wascarried out because at some times the socio-economic situation was not favourable to quarryingactivities. At such times, marble extraction wasabandoned. Recognition of this marble as a GHSRwould result in a certain degree of protection forthe quarries, preventing their closure even in theevent of sharp drops in demand.

A. Wikstrom is retired from the Geological Survey ofSweden, Uppsala. We thank T. Lundqvist for criticallyreading the manuscript, and S. Underwood at Leeds Univer-sity, C. Ericson at Kolmarden, and K. M. Lindgren at Kol-marden for their permission to reproduce Figures 4 and 5and 1–6, respectively. B. Marker is acknowledged for hiscritical review. Project KAGZ of the University of Sala-manca provided some funding for the publication of results.

References

Asklund, B. 1955. Marmorbruket och Kolmardsmar-morns geologiska historia. In: Elgeskog, V. (ed.)Marmorbruket pa Kolmarden. Norrkopings TidningarsAktiebolag, Norrkoping, 229–254. (In Swedish)

Cooper, B. J., Marker, B. R., Pereira, D. & Schouen-

borg, B. 2013. Establishment of the ‘Heritage StoneTask Group’ (HSTG). Episodes, 31, 8–10.

Elgeskog, V. 1955. Marmorbruket pa Kolmarden.Norrkopings Tidningars Aktiebolag. Norrkoping.(In Swedish)

Lindgren, K. 2012. Kolmardens marmor under 300 ar,2nd edition. Kolmardens djurpark, Norrkoping. (InSwedish)

Meinert, L., Dipple, G. & Nicolescu, S. 2005. Worldskarn deposits. In: Hedenquist, J. W., Thompson,J. F. H., Goldfarb, R. J. & Richards, J. (eds) OneHundredth Anniversary Volume, 1905–2005. Societyof Economic Geologists, Littleton, CO, 299–336.

Navarro, R., Pereira, D., Gimeno, A. & del Barrio, S.2013. Verde Macael: a serpentinite wrongly referred toas a marble. Geosciences, 3–1, 102–113.

Wikstrom, A. 1979. Berggrundskartan Katrineholm SO(1:50.000). Map and description. Sveriges geologiskaundersokning Af 123. (English summary).

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