limestone

(noun)

An abundant rock of marine and freshwater sediments, primarily composed of calcite (CaCO₃); it occurs in a variety of forms, both crystalline and amorphous.

Related Terms

Examples of limestone in the following topics:

  • Monotypes

    • The surface, called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate or limestone litho stone, but in contemporary work, zinc, glass, or polymer are often used.
    • A traditional lithograph is made by drawing an image with oil, fat, or wax onto the surface of a smooth, level limestone block.
    • A traditional lithograph is made by drawing an image with oil, fat, or wax onto the surface of a smooth, level limestone block.

  • Architecture of the Middle Kingdom

    • Ancient Egyptian architects used sun-dried bricks, fine sandstone, limestone and granite for their building purposes.
    • Typical for Middle Kingdom pyramids, the Black Pyramid, although encased in limestone, is made of mud brick and clay instead of stone.
    • Middle Kingdom pyramids consist of mud brick and clay encased in limestone.

  • Malagan Carvings

    • Kulap are carved from chalk limestone native to the region, and they are often painted; they are expressly produced by artisans from the Rossel Mountains.
    • The chalk limestone used for carving kulap is found in the river beds of the hilly Punam region of southern New Ireland.
    • Kulap figurines, made of chalk or limestone, are currently preserved in many museums in Berlin, New York, Australia, and Africa.

  • Architecture in the Greek High Classical Period

    • Materials used included thin slabs of Pentelic marble in the superstructure and limestone at the platform.
    • The rows of limestone seats filter out low-frequency sounds, such as the murmur of the crowd, and amplify high-frequency sounds from the stage.

  • Sculpture of the Old Kingdom

    • Carved out of limestone, it represents a mythical creature known as a sphinx, with a lion's body and a human head.
    • Paints were obtained from minerals such as iron ores (red and yellow ochres), copper ores (blue and green), soot or charcoal (black), and limestone (white).

  • Sculpture in the Greek Orientalizing Period

    • A small limestone statue of a kore (maiden), known as the Lady of Auxerre (650-625 BCE), from Crete demonstrates the style of early Greek figural sculptures.

  • Artifacts of Assyria

    • Erected during a time of civil war (825 BCE), the limestone Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III is the most intact Assyrian obelisk found to date.
    • This limestone obelisk contains 20 registers depicting conquered kings paying tribute to Assyrian power and celebrating the military campaigns of Shalmaneser III.

  • Sculpture in Mesopotamia

    • Materials range from alabaster to limestone to gypsum, depending on each figure's significance.
    • The votive figure—made from alabaster, shell, black limestone, and bitumen—depicts a male worshiper of Enil, a powerful Mesopotamian god.
    • The lapis lazuli, shell, red limestone decoration, and the head of the bull are original.

  • The Nile River

    • High-quality building stones were abundant: the ancient Egyptians quarried limestone all along the Nile valley, granite from Aswan, and basalt and sandstone from the wadis (valleys) of the eastern desert.

  • Architecture in Assyria

    • According to contemporaneous inscriptions, the palace consisted of wood from a diverse number of tree species, alabaster, limestone, and a variety of precious metals.