Kilkenny Marble
Encyclopedia
Black Kilkenny marble is a finely grained carboniferous
limestone (Lower Carboniferous, Butlersgrove Formation) that can show fossils.
The City of Kilkenny
is often referred to as "The Marble City". The foothpaths of the city streets were paved with limestone
flagstones, which, when wet, glistened. On dark, wet, winter evenings the street lights reflected from the foothpath which were highly polished with wear.
A very dark grey Limestone
was quarried just outside Kilkenny City at a place known as "The Black Quarry", due to the colour of the final product. Large rough-hewn blocks were transported on horse-drawn drays to the River Nore
a short distance away, then onto small river floats or barges and brought about 3 kilometers down-river to Milmount where it was worked. A weir on the river provided water to drive reciprocating, cross-cut type, saws to cut the larger blocks into the finished shapes required for the market. The saws were actually steel bands, about four meters long. Sand was used as an abrasive cutting agent.
The Black Quarry is known to have been in use since the 17th century. The quarry was filled-in in the 1970s, but a cliff face still remains exposed and can be seen from the Bennettsbridge
road. Water levels were kept low by two steel 30 cm. dia reciprocating pumps, probably driven by steam. A lime kiln was located close by which produced lime from the stone chips and off-cuts. Coal, probably from Castlecomer
, twelve kilometers north of Kilkenny, layered with stone and set to smoulder, produced white chunks of lime, which, when powdered was used as an agricultural fertilizer.
The quarry was owned by the Colles family, a famous member being Professor Abraham Colles
who gave his name to the Colles' fracture
.
As well as in several local buildings, Kilkenny Black Marble was used in the Cobh Cathedral
in Cobh
, Co. Cork. The headstone of Daniel O'Connell
in Glasnevin Cemetery
, Dublin is also made of Kilkenny Marble.
From the top of the Black Quarry as it is today, Oliver Cromwell is said to have positioned cannons and fired on the city.
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
limestone (Lower Carboniferous, Butlersgrove Formation) that can show fossils.
The City of Kilkenny
Kilkenny
Kilkenny is a city and is the county town of the eponymous County Kilkenny in Ireland. It is situated on both banks of the River Nore in the province of Leinster, in the south-east of Ireland...
is often referred to as "The Marble City". The foothpaths of the city streets were paved with limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
flagstones, which, when wet, glistened. On dark, wet, winter evenings the street lights reflected from the foothpath which were highly polished with wear.
A very dark grey Limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
was quarried just outside Kilkenny City at a place known as "The Black Quarry", due to the colour of the final product. Large rough-hewn blocks were transported on horse-drawn drays to the River Nore
River Nore
The River Nore is a long river located in south-east of Ireland. Along with the River Suir and River Barrow, it is one of the constituent rivers of the group known as the Three Sisters. The river drains approximately of Leinster. The river rises in the Devil's Bit Mountain, North Tipperary...
a short distance away, then onto small river floats or barges and brought about 3 kilometers down-river to Milmount where it was worked. A weir on the river provided water to drive reciprocating, cross-cut type, saws to cut the larger blocks into the finished shapes required for the market. The saws were actually steel bands, about four meters long. Sand was used as an abrasive cutting agent.
The Black Quarry is known to have been in use since the 17th century. The quarry was filled-in in the 1970s, but a cliff face still remains exposed and can be seen from the Bennettsbridge
Bennettsbridge
Bennettsbridge is a village in County Kilkenny in Ireland.It is situated on the river Nore south of Kilkenny city, in the centre of the county. It is located in the province of Leinster in the south-east of the island of Ireland...
road. Water levels were kept low by two steel 30 cm. dia reciprocating pumps, probably driven by steam. A lime kiln was located close by which produced lime from the stone chips and off-cuts. Coal, probably from Castlecomer
Castlecomer
Castlecomer is a town in the barony of Fassadinin, County Kilkenny in Ireland.The Irish name for the town translates to "The castle at the confluence of the rivers"; the "rivers" refers to the rivers Deen, Brocagh and Clohogue while the "castle" refers to the castle built by the Normans in 1171...
, twelve kilometers north of Kilkenny, layered with stone and set to smoulder, produced white chunks of lime, which, when powdered was used as an agricultural fertilizer.
The quarry was owned by the Colles family, a famous member being Professor Abraham Colles
Abraham Colles
Abraham Colles was professor of Anatomy, Surgery and Physiology at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Descended from a Worcestershire family, some of whom had sat in Parliament, he was born to William Colles and Mary Anne Bates of Woodbroak, Co. Wexford...
who gave his name to the Colles' fracture
Colles' fracture
A Colles' fracture, also Colles fracture, is a fracture of the distal radius in the forearm with dorsal displacement of the wrist and hand. The fracture is sometimes referred to as a "dinner fork" or "bayonet" deformity due to the shape of the resultant forearm...
.
As well as in several local buildings, Kilkenny Black Marble was used in the Cobh Cathedral
Cobh Cathedral
St. Colman’s Cathedral is a Roman Catholic Cathedral located in Cobh, Ireland. It is the cathedral church of the Diocese of Cloyne.-Schedule of Mass and other services:MassWeekdays: 8am & 10amSaturday: 6pmSunday: 8am, 10am, 12noon & 7pm...
in Cobh
Cobh
Cobh is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour. Facing the town are Spike Island and Haulbowline Island...
, Co. Cork. The headstone of Daniel O'Connell
Daniel O'Connell
Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell (6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847; often referred to as The Liberator, or The Emancipator, was an Irish political leader in the first half of the 19th century...
in Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery , officially known as Prospect Cemetery, is the largest non-denominational cemetery in Ireland with an estimated 1.5 million burials...
, Dublin is also made of Kilkenny Marble.
From the top of the Black Quarry as it is today, Oliver Cromwell is said to have positioned cannons and fired on the city.