Edificio di servizio alla lizza di Piastreta

The Lizza di Piastreta, also known as Monorotaia di Piastreta ("Piastreta Monorail"), was an Italian industrial

monorail A monorail is a Rail transport, railway in which the track consists of a single rail or beam. Colloquially, the term "monorail" is often used to describe any form of elevated rail or people mover. More accurately, the term refers to the style ...

serving the

marble quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to manage their safety ...

of Piastreta, in the

Apuan Alps The Apuan Alps () are a mountain range in northern Tuscany, Italy. They are included between the valleys of the Serchio and Magra rivers, and, to the northwest, the Garfagnana and Lunigiana, with a total length of approximately . The name deri ...

, and linking it to Renara, in the municipal territory of

Massa Massa may refer to: Places Italy *Province of Massa and Carrara, province in the Tuscany region of Italy * Duchy of Massa and Carrara, controlled the towns of Massa di Carrara and Carrara * Roman Catholic Diocese of Massa Marittima-Piombi ...

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

.Article on alpiapuane.com
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History

The monorail was projected in 1922 by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

engineer Charles Denham, owner of the quarry of Piastreta. The line, used to carry the

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

from the quarry to the valley, consisted of a single rail on wooden sleepers, on which a motorized tractor hauled a sled load. The system of the sleds was already used, for the transport of marble, also in other '' vie di lizza'' (i.e. "routes of contention"), on other trials used for the '' lizzatura''. This was the only plant of its kind to be built, and the track was realized in the workshops of

Sesto San Giovanni Sesto San Giovanni (; , ), locally referred to as just Sesto (), is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Milan, in the Italian region of Lombardy. It was awarded with the honorary title of ''città'' (city) by decree of 10 Apri ...

, near

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

.List of possible heritage sites in the Apuan Alps National Park (see page 5)
/ref> In 1959 the course was shortened to Pianel Soprano, closing the route to Renara. Reopened in 1962, the line was active until 1975, when a road for

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...

s was opened. The line is still intact, except for some portions disappeared due to erosion. The line, also named ''Lizza della Monorotaia'' or ''Monorotaia Denham'',Article on paesiapuani.it
/ref> is part of a route of

industrial archaeology Industrial archaeology (IA) is the systematic study of material evidence associated with the Industry (manufacturing), industrial past. This evidence, collectively referred to as industrial heritage, includes buildings, machinery, artifacts, si ...

and, since 2003, like many in the basin of Massa, it is included in the Archaeological Park of the Apuan Alps.

Route

The monorail starts in the quarries of Piastreta (1,580 m), below the

Sella Sella may refer to: Places * Sella, Alicante, a municipality in Spain * Sella, Greece, a village in Greece * Sella group, mountains in the Dolomites * Sella River (Bay of Biscay), Asturias, Spain * Sella River (Guam) Other uses * Sella (surname) ...

mountain, and reaches Renara (310 m),Article on "profili apuani" website
/ref> a zone near the village of Gronda, 9 km far from

. From an altitude of 995 m begins its descent through a channel called "Fosso del Chiasso", where the slope reaches 90% until the end of the trail at the hill of load. In this section the rail is flanked by a staircase of 2,500 steps that allowed the miners to reach the caves.

Gallery

File:Particolare della lizza di Piastreta.jpg, Detail of the track with the parallel stairs File:La vallata di Renara.jpg, Renara valley from above and quarrymen's shelter File:Macchinari dei cavatori (Lizza di Piastreta).jpg, Machinery of the quarrymen near a shelter on the line

References

External links

{{coord, 44, 4, 30.29, N, 10, 13, 0.95, E, display=title Monorails in Italy Massa Rail freight transport in Italy Railway lines in Tuscany Railway lines opened in 1922 Railway lines closed in 1975 Industrial archaeological sites Industrial railways Mining in Italy Marble

History

Route

Gallery

See also

References

External links