A bridge between geological, mining and archaeological heritage: The Monreal marble quarry (Salamanca, Spain)

Abstract

Natural stone has been utilised in the southeastern region of Salamanca province (Spain) since the Chalcolithic period, with the Monreal quarry and its Cream Monreal Marble forming part of this legacy. This study aims to revaluate the Monreal quarry, which is included in the Spanish Inventory of Sites of Geological Interest (IELIG) and currently shows signs of neglect and vandalism. The quarry was operational until recently and remnants of the extraction methods can still be found. The research primarily focuses on the geological and mining educational potential of the site, highlighting its exceptional palaeontological significance and its connections to the area’s archaeological heritage. The Monreal quarry contains the highest concentration of archaeocyaths from the Upper Ovetian (Cambrian Series 2 Stage 3) of the Iberian Peninsula and, hence, Western Europe. This makes it the best outcrop for observing these fossils and understanding these hypercalcified marine animals that inhabited the region about 515 Ma ago. This study reveals for the first time that the Cream Monreal Marble and a Visigothic religious sculpture housed in the Museum of Salamanca are identical in mesoscale, mineralogical composition and isotopic C and O, thereby establishing a significant link between the quarry and the historical heritage of the region. Additionally, a georoute between the Monreal quarry, the Granite Theme Park of Los Santos, and the Iter ab Emerita Asturicam Roman road (UNESCO World Heritage Site) is suggested to facilitate the preservation of the quarry and enhance its geological, palaeontological, mining and cultural values.