Peccia: marble and soapstone

Cavergno

The valley and its stone

The side valley of Peccia is characterised by outcrops of soapstone and white marble, quarried for over sixty years. One of the side valleys of Peccia, between 900 and 1300 m. asl, is distinguished by the presence of marble and soapstone. In a place known as “Gheiba” white marble has been quarried for over sixty years and then been processed at workshops in Peccia. This is Switzerland’s only marble quarry.

For almost thirty years there has even been a school of sculpture in Peccia which organizes numerous courses every year for professionals and beginners as well as a themed exhibition at the centre of the village.

Soapstone has been quarried and processed since the beginning of the 1900s. Stoneware pots called “laveggi” and stoves for heating homes were the main products which have been sold as far afield as the markets of Milan and Hamburg since 1500.