Posts Tagged ‘Marble’

Experience the Stonework of Art with Marble and Granite

Monday, October 11th, 2010

Marble and granite are stones which are quarried from Earth’s crust. Both are formed from Magma which is cooled over thousand years to form a rock, is the only similarity between the two. These rocks are classified in 3 types: Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic.

The difference between marble and granite is as follows:

  • Granite is hard stone formed by crystallized minerals under high temperature and pressure. Marble is considered to be sediment from plant matter, shells or even animal skeletons. After many years of resting under the earth’s crust, these super hot bodies start to rise and solidify as it cools to form hard stone called as Marble.
  • Granite is considered to be Igneous and Marble is Metamorphic.
  • Granite contains minerals like Quartz, mica and feldspar. After many years of pressure, results in hard, stain resistant and durable stone. Color of the granites depends on difference in the minerals .Marble, similar to granite also formed thousand years back. It is created from limestone. After much pressure and heat, the limestone texture begins to experience a transformation process called recrystallization.
  • Minerals present in granite creating unique textures, patterns and colors. It is resistant to heat, scratches, stains and heat. They are long lasting and are considered very durable. As marbles are made of calcite, it is sensitive to tile cleaners and acidic foods like lemon, wine, vinegar, and tomatoes which make the finish of marble dull.
  • There are two types of granite stones: Flamed and Honed granite. For flamed granite, a flame is applied on the surface causing melting of surface crystals. Honed granite is shiny and has reflective surfaced with soft matte appearance. Marble contains different kinds: Calcites, serpentines, Limestone, onyx, and travertine.

However, both the marble and granite are the most demanded stones to add beauty and elegance to the architectural design of your surroundings.

Marble is considered to be versatile stone known for its luxury, beauty and durability. Home decorators usually prefer marble for its elegance and artistic look. It is mainly preferred in kitchens due to its availability in many textures, colors and designs. It has also got many rough and tough features for which it is easy to maintain them.

The most usage of Marble in the house is Kitchen countertops. Your construction would not be completed unless you have marble kitchen which add value to your house. If the surface of the marble is sealed, then you can easily keep hot and cold items on its surface which would not damage unlike other countertops.

They are easily installed and with the large variety of marbles available in the market, the price of them has also reduced .The only thing we have to take care is to seal the Marble tiles to avoid stains as they very porous. As kitchens are most popular rooms in a house, it’s great to invest money in marble kitchen.

They have many advantages and some of them are as follows:

  • Marble kitchens are soft, smooth, shine and bright which make kitchen look striking.
  • It has wide variety of colors to choose from making it look class, style and true elegance.
  • They are easy to maintain if they are taken proper care and good sealers are used time to time making it more durable.
  • Though they are regarded as expensive, they are available all around the world making it affordable and cheaper.

Natural Stones and Their Uses

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

Stones have been used by mankind since ages. Their use can be prominently seen in historical monuments. In fact their use their use becomes even more prominent as we go back in time. Today also natural stones are of great importance to man and rather it can be said that now even more number of applications of these stones have been discovered.

Stones like quartz (sandstone), marble, granite and pumice are widely used today for various purposes. These stones are used for construction of houses, for the constructions of bridges, pavements, buildings and decorative showpieces as well. This varied use is a consequence of the fact that they are found in various forms.

These different forms have varying strengths, different textures, and different physical and chemical properties. They are also found in a variety of colors. Let us take a look at the various properties and uses of some of these stones.

Granite is a widely used stone due to its durability strength and beauty. It is very smooth and shiny and hence adds a grace to the things made out of it. It can be used to make kitchen worktops, other countertops and furniture as it is completely scratch resistant and also very easy to maintain.

It is also extremely hygienic due to a very compact crystalline structure. Such a structure does not allow bacteria to hide. It can be very quickly and easily cleaned by just water. It is also used to build kitchen counters due to its heat resisting character. This is property it has due to igneous origins.

Quartz or sandstone is generally used for making bricks. It is extremely hard but on the other hand its rough nature prevents its use in making furniture. But in recent times a new trend of using polished quartz stone for making luxury worktops has started. In fact some of these counters are costlier than the granite ones. It is also extremely easy to maintain and clean.

Marble is one of the cheapest of stones used for tiling, making decorative showpieces and sometimes also for making furniture and countertops. Though it is cheap it is no less in beauty than granite and sandstone. Its milky white color is loved by all and hence it is most commonly used stone for making showpieces. It is not widely used for making worktops due to lack of strength and durability.

History of Natural Stone Applications

Monday, January 19th, 2009

The history of natural stone applications dates back to sometime around 5000 years ago. In fact the time span is so long that it is not at all easy to comprehend standing at the edge of twentieth century. Ancient men used natural stone as their weapons and later on, after being civilized they learnt other usages of stones. There are quite a number of monuments, pillars, ancient statues and temples which were made of natural stones and all of them are standing boldly without a trace of fracture or crack. The designs carved on these stone statues might have faded away with the natural decaying process executed by the air, water, rain etc but the strength of the stature is retained perfectly. It shows that the natural stones are the most durable elements and ancient people knew it very well.

In Egypt, you get to see the world famous Pyramids which are all made of natural sand stones available in plenty in the country. In fact the historians believe that Egyptian civilization was the first to prepare stone architecture. Granites and lime stones are widely used in their structures. The “Great Pyramid of Cheops” was constructed in 2560 BC and is still alive with all its grace and beauty. Huge stone blocks were used to prepare these large structures. The outer portion of the pyramids use the yellowish lime stones wherein the interior features usage of granites. The blocks are fitted so perfectly that not a ray of light can enter inside the pyramids.

Though Egyptians are considered the pioneers in application and carving the natural stones, the Greeks were no less than them. They created many aesthetically pleasant stone statues and temples in their territory. But Greek sculpture mainly features marble stones which were polished to show ultimate off grandeur. “Temple of Artemis”, Statue of Zeus is few of the best stone works by the Greek architects. The comparatively newer Greek monuments include Theseum, Parthenon and many more. They still make the visitors spellbound with the natural shine and beauty. IN fact they lead the way of using stones at home. In ancient Greek household they started making pools, small statues etc with marbles.

The Roman stone work features the usage of both marbles and granites. In fact the strength, endurance and durability of the granite stones inspired them to use it for building roads. The columns of the houses and constructions, walls of public baths were all made from granites. But they adored marble stones for its beauty and splendor. They invented the technique of covering brick buildings with marble stones and this is in practice till date. The Taj Mahal, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is carved from milky white marble stone. The Chinese wall is also made from natural stone. Till date the natural stones are used to decorate the rooms of regular household and hold preference over synthetic stones.  For understanding  on natural stone and synthetic stone, click here.

It shows that the popularity of natural stones like will remain unaltered always not only because they are durable but also for their pleasant appearance. Get the best quality marble, granite and limestone in the  Bay Area California at Marble City Company