Peruvian Travertine is an exceptionally dense stone quarried from 3800-5000 metres in the Central Andes Range, resulting in an extremely compact sedimentation.
The amazing consistency and low porosity of this stone enables Peruvian producers to cut tiles up to 1.80m long by 0.90m in width in only 1 cm. thickness. This allows great savings not only in the stone itself but in transportation, handling and installation costs.
The faces are so dense and minimally filled, they produce a beautiful honed or high polished finish. Installers prefer working with this stone because the edges don’t chatter in the saw and the cut edges are easily and beautifully refinished. Its moisture retention is between 0.5 and 1.9% and can be used for exterior installations in all climates in Canada.
The communities located in the Central Andes Range of Peru participate intensively in stone quarrying, cutting and finishing as they live at altitudes between 3800 and 5000 m where no agriculture exists. These quarries have trained and educated generations of stone masons and expert stone craftspeople.
In these Andean communities, typically men participate in the extraction of blocks thus becoming qualified and skilled in heavy equipment operation, truck driving, electrical work, etc… thus earning 5 times more than farmers in Andean communities at lower altitudes. Women are particularly sought-after for their precision and craftsmanship in producing handmade stone mosaics.