Polished Plaster - A Brief History

Commonly known as Venetian Plaster, Marmorino or Stucco Veneziano, Polished Plaster has been used as a decorative material since around 900BC.

It is one of the oldest building materials known to mankind. Romans have been known to use it as a fine application over a course lime and sand aggregate - not dissimilar to the techniques used today.

During the Renaissance in the mid 15th century the Marmorino finish was developed in Venice, Italy and used mainly for external use, due to it's durability, to protect the civil plaster masonry.

Marmorino maintained its prestige for centuries until around the end of the 1800's when interested in it faded and it was considered only as an economical solution to the use of marble. That is, until around the 1970's, when Italian architect Carlo Scarpa re-established and encouraged these techniques himself that it returned to the interest of the best modern architects. There is now a resurgence of interest in these finishes that a new generation of designers and architects are now realising the potential of Marmorino.

It was Venetian plasterers who perfected the stucco techniques which are still used today.

Polished Plaster starts out with limestone rocks from quarries or rivers. Over the course of time, using heat and water the limestone rocks are turned into 'lime putty'. It is this putty, which is then mixed with ground marble dust and colourants and applied with a high grade steel blade finishing trowel which transforms an ordinary wall or ceiling into a work of art.