Arialla slag locality, Valpiana - Castello della Marsiliana area slag sites, Massa Marittima, Grosseto Province, Tuscany, Italyi

Regional Level Types
Arialla slag locality	Slag Locality
Valpiana - Castello della Marsiliana area slag sites	Group of Slag Localities
Massa Marittima	Commune
Grosseto Province	Province
Tuscany	Region
Italy	- not defined -

The Arialla site was an important metallurgical centre, also documented by the “Ordinamenta super artem fossarum rameriae et argenteriae civitatis Massae”. Active in the 13th and 14th centuries, the site is located just 1 km from Massa Marittima.

According to Simonin (1858), the slags at Arialla amounted to approximately 25,000 t; however, owing to 20th century reuse, only sporadic hand-sized fragments can now be found on the ground. These fragments are dark grey, tapped slags without evident flow textures; they are more compact and
less glassy in aspect than the Marsiliana slags. The Arialla slags are lime-rich and textures are dominated by the presence of calcium silicates, in particular, melilite and kirschsteinite. The latter is a quench phase occurring as crystals that indicate disequilibrium crystallisation. Conversely, the polyhedral habit of melilite suggests equilibrium crystallisation in the melt. Apart from sulphides, other strongly backscattering grains also often occur: metallic grain with compositions varying from pure metals (Pb, Sb or Fe) to metal alloys (usually Cu–Sb, Fe–As alloys).

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