Marble

Marble is a metamorphic rock, formed by recrystallization of lime stone/calcite, having hardness 3 to 4 and generally white in colour. Commercially, any coloured stone like Calc-silicate, dolomite, and serpentine rocks are also considered as marble due to their appealing looks, polishability and having hardness 3 to 4 are being marketed as marble.

Pure white marble is the result of metamorphism of a very pure (silicate-poor) limestone or dolomite protolith. The characteristic swirls and veins of many colored marble varieties are usually due to various mineral impurities such as clay, silt, sand, iron oxides, or chert which were originally present as grains or layers in the limestone. Green coloration is often due to serpentine resulting from originally high magnesium limestone or dolostone with silica impurities. These various impurities have been mobilized and recrystallized by the intense pressure and heat of the metamorphism.

Marble is mainly used as a construction material in construction of columns, beams, lintels and cantilevers, Exterior and Interior Cladding, Flooring in the forms of tiles, Sculpture, Landscaping, Furniture in the forms of table tops, benches etc.