There are really a lot of different stones available for use these days. However, most people are still confused about the difference mainly of granite and marble since most people think that all stones are marble although there is a huge difference between the two.
What is Marble
Marble – a carbonate rock that can be easily ground and polish. It is not as hard as granite and is not resistant to the harshness of the different weather conditions that makes this stone suitable for homes and enclosed spaces. Marble also contains more richly colours and patterned than granite.
Some famous exquisite materials that came from marble is the sculpture of Venus Miloska, the Carrara stone by Michelangelo, and, of course, the polished slab found in kitchens worktops and home flooring.
What is Granite
Granite – Most people consider this material as a stone that can be used forever because granite is known for its hardness, strength and durability. Granite is a granular rock formed by the crystallization of magma in the crust and is mainly composed of the minerals such as mica, feldspar and quartz. Its unique structural, monumental, and decorative facing material has physicomechanical properties. Its density is 2700 kg/m3, 150 to 250 Mpa for its compressive strength, and 7 by Mohs scale for its hardness. Granite is also cold resistant, does not age and is highly resistant to weathering. Once a granite is polished, it can preserve its luster for years, even centuries and millenniums.
There is no shortage of this stone as there is an inexhaustible quantity found of it on earth. When it comes to its colour, this stone comes in a huge variety. Colors that are not just the white Norwegian granite and the black African stone, it also comes in pearly-gray, pink, cream, red, green, and bluish hues. The unique colors that they also offer come in highly decorative styles.
The Connection of Granite and Human Civilization
The need to process stone has been crucial to the early development of the human race. During the stone age period, stones were the main material used to make axes and hoes. Stones were also the main material used for weapons and they were mainly used for their arrows, spears, and tips. These stones were also used as ornaments and attributes as symbols that were somehow connected with their dwellings, their religious monuments, and their human life. Since stones played a very important part during the primitive community, it is just natural that the name of that age would be attributed to stones. The Paleolithic Age, which comes from the Latin paleo old and lith stone, started the use of stone tools. This only ended after the discovery of copper.
The evolution of stones started with the use of rough unprocessed stones to the invention of different cutting tools. During the Paleolithic Age, men slowly understood how to process stones. During the Early to Middle Paleolithic era, men were able to dislodge and break them while they were able to split and rough hew these stones during the Late Paleolithic. During the Neolithic age, they were able to cut grind and drill holes with the stones.
During the Bronze and Iron Ages, when metal tools were invented, people were able to master the skill of processing and cutting hard rocks like granite. The ancient Egyptians are a good example of how they were able to process granite as their ancient civilization can lead us to 7.8 millennium. In the course of their dynasties, they were able to construct pyramids and make pharaohs sarcophagus’s.Although the Egyptian pyramids were mostly built using nummulite stones, however, the base to top of the Mycerinus pyramid are made of pink syenite tiles. Egyptians are known for being precise and mythological that can also be seen with their use of the granite sarcophagus of
Although the Egyptian pyramids were mostly built using nummulite stones, the base to top of the Mycerinus pyramid are made of pink syenite tiles. Egyptians are known for being precise and mythological that can also be seen with their use of the granite sarcophagus of Senizert II. The sides of this sarcophagus are 0.2mm differences in dimensions and the creation of this particular sarcophagus can be admired until today.
Processing and the creations of granite monuments were done for many centuries. However, time also played a significant role in the development of beautiful, monumental, precise stone products.
The Greek civilization provided some evidence about granite products. Granite was used to create world famous monuments in Athens, and the Agamemnon’s tomb in Mycenae, which is made of green porphyry.
The Romans, who took advantage of the knowledge passed down to them by their ancestors, made sure that they are able to improve granite processing. Their mark in history are the monuments and temples in Europe that are still preserved until today.
Although during the Medieval Age and Renaissance period, there were not a lot of progress in granite processing that stage had a lot of intensive construction. Saint Michel monastery in Bretan in France and the 15th-century abbey were made of granite products.
During the 18th century and the construction of Saint Petersburg, the development of large-scale granite products were created. Peter the Great in 1782 was raised with a basement of polish pink granite that is also overlaid by a group of bronze horses.
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