Abstract
At the beginning of 2000, eight ornamental stone quarries in Asturias extracted rocks from two paleozoic formations (Arnao and Alba) and a mesozoic one (Lastres). Limestones were exploited in the two first formations, whereas sandstones were extracted from the third one. The petrographical (texture, mineralogy, etc.) and physico-mechanical characteristics (volumetric weight, porosity, water absorption, freezing and salt crystallization resistance, elastic modulus, friction wear resistance, and impact, uniaxial compression and flexure strengths) of these materials are here presented, to introduce them to the Natural Stone sector (these rocks do not appear in the spanish ornamental stone catalogues) and to give information about their more suitable uses. According to the obtained results, limestones, as ornamental stone, could be used for any purpose, while sandstones could have, after long time, some problems in marine and/or contaminated environments.
