Mapping Lioz Limestone in Monuments at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Lioz Limestone occurrences in Lisbon and near regions have been exploited since the Roman Empire. This rock is a fossil-rich Cretaceous microcrystalline limestone that presents different colours. Its characteristics and quality as a building material, along with the Portuguese Kingdom’s expansion, made this natural stone a remarkable example of wide use through centuries in different countries. Due to its cultural and historical values, Lioz Limestone received the designation of Global Heritage Stone Resource — GHSR in 2018. This stone was brought to Brazil initially as ballast in vessels and later with pre-defined projects ordered to compose religious and governmental buildings. It was applied in floors, ornaments, facades, stairways, etc. An ongoing inventory in Rio de Janeiro has identified, thus far, thirty-four examples of culturally significant applications of this GHSR. Some of them are visiting points of Geotouristic routes, where Lioz serves as a tool to disseminate geosciences to the non-specialized public and improve geology students learning. The most common deterioration patterns found in this stone at Rio are microkarst, pitting, loss of matrix, black crusts, biological colonization, bleaching, and deposits that can be attributed to the tropical climate and also to the influence of the polluted and saline environment where these buildings are located. Identifying Lioz Limestone use and its decay patterns in Rio de Janeiro, a World Heritage Site, may aid the conservation of important Brazilian built heritage and encourage international cooperation research.