ABSTRACT
Colored marine limestones of Silurian to Carboniferous age are widespread in the Rhenish Massif, the Harz Mountains and the northwestern parts of the Bohemian Massif. These limestones were exploited in hundreds of quarries between the end of the 15th and the end of the 20th century. They were used as dimension stones mainly for interior decoration, locally for exterior work, too. Due to their good polish, they were called “marbles”. During the Upper Silurian, marine limestones and limestone-shale turbidite sequences were deposited in the western part of the Saxothuringian Zone. Stratigraphically, the predominantly nodular limestones belong to the Ockerkalk Formation. During the Middle to Upper Devonian, a widespread carbonatic sedimentation and growth of reefs developed at the southern margin of the Old Red continent. Reef limestones from this “Devonian South Sea” are known from the Rhenish Massif and the Harz Mts. The most important quarry district with more than 100 quarries was the Lahn region in the southeastern Rhenish Massif.
