It can’t be denied that the Arco lamp is iconic for several reasons, but one of the most important is the impressive piece of solid marble that makes up its base. This so recognized and popular design of the Castiglioni brothers weighs in its entirety around 65 Kg, and around 80% of that weight is all concentrated in the base. This base is not like the base of an average floor lamp in its category, and this is obvious. Broadly speaking, it’s a parallelepiped made entirely of a solid piece of white Carrara marble. Some very select replicas also use black marble.

The reasons why this type of marble was chosen precisely for the base of this artifact are several, all very important and considerable: firstly, a sufficiently heavy material was needed to provide stability to the design, since having that characteristic curved shape, it needed a counterweight that would allow it to maintain its balance. Concrete was too rustic and unsightly material. Then, Carrara marble was soon chosen, not only because each piece of marble is a specimen extracted directly from nature but because it’s unmatched and irreplaceable, giving it amazing added value. 

As if that were not enough, this type of marble is the same that was used in many architectural works from ancient Greece and the Roman Empire and in many works by the sculptor Michelangelo, including David. Having an Arco lamp in your living room is a symbol of greatness, status, and good taste.