Marble vs Granite

Granite or Marble?

That is the question burning through every new homebuyer or remodele’s dreams.The ultimate answer is: Yes, please,some of both! But to understand  which applications are best for which stone variety, we first need to understand a little more about the stone themselves.

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Marble

Marble, formed limestone with heat and pressure over years in the earth’s crust. These pressure or forces cause the limestone to change in texture and makeup. The process is called recrystallization.

Fossilized materials in the limestone, along with its original carbonate minerals, recrystallize and form large,coarse grains of calcite. The minerals that result from impurities give marble a wide variety of colors. The purest calcite marble is white in color.  Marble containing hematite are reddish in color.

Marble that has limonite is yellow, and marble with serpentine is green in color Marble does not split easily into sheets of equal size and must be mined with care.

Uses of Marble

Marble has always been highly valued for its beauty, strength, and resistance to fire and erosion. The ancient Iranian & Greeks were good user of marble in their buildings and statues. The italian artist Michelangelo used marble from Carrara, Italy, in a number of sculptures.

Marble from Tennessee was used in parts of National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. ground marble is also used in paving roads and in manufacturing roofing materials and soil treatment products.

Granite

Granite, from igneous rock, is a very hard, crystalline, and primarily composed of feldspar, quartz accompanied by one or more dark minerals. It is visibly homogeneous in texture.
The term ” Granite ” means ” grain” in Latin word ” Granum ” because of its granular nature. The principal characteristics of granite also include high load bearing capacity, crushing strength, abrasive strength, amenability to cutting and shaping without secondary flaws, ability to yield thin and large slabs and – above all – durability.

Due to highly dense grain, it is impervious to stain. Polished granite has achieved a special status as building stones globally. Granite is also used for wall cladding, roofing, flooring, and a variety of other interior and eksterior applications.

Uses of Granite

* Roadstone, building blocks, but has poor resistance to fire as it crumbles when exposed to intense heat.
* Traditionally the main use of black granite is in tombstones and other monumental items, and to a lesser extent for various types of counters, especially in the financial world, decorative  applications, elegant trimmings and luxury floorings.
* Stones on bolo cord slides and pendants, paperweights, bookends, lazy susan turntables, etc.

When we compare marble to granite, we find that granite is stronger than marble, does not lose its polish after long term exposure to water ( like marble does ), and does not easily  stain in the presence of food acids like fruit juice, coffee, and wine ( like marble does ).

Marble vs Granite