Picture of a stone

 

Information and interesting facts on natural stone, such as marble, granite, basalt, quartzite, sandstone and other types, especially concerning their use as tiles, floor slabs, washbasins, etc. Regardless of how they are used, marble and granite add a special touch to every home's interior.

Marble is a crystalline rock which originated as limestone around 60 to 600 million years ago, which is why it can only be found in the oldest strata of the Earth.
The soft calcium combines with carbonic acid to form the salt calcium carbonate, from which many rock masses are created. Through metamorphosis, this calcium carbonate turns into marble.
Metamorphosis is a true chemical and physical wonder of Mother Nature, who, deep down in her crust, manages to convert solid rock at unimaginably high pressure and temperature levels. Nevertheless, it does not melt: its structure changes and crystallises.
Marble as we know it is cut from the ground in large blocks, sawn into slices - known as slabs - and subjected to a meticulous finishing process to unveil beautiful, glossy panels in an endless range of colours and patterns. Obviously, each piece is completely unique - every marble panel looks slightly different. And always completely natural: after all, marble is the epitome of natural stone.


Granite is a hard, compressed igneous rock. It is created when magma cools under high pressure deep within the Earth's crust.
Its chemical composition is dominated by silicon, which is the second most common element on our planet and constitutes an extremely thick-skinned semimetal: it is highly resistant to acids, conducts electrons at best reluctantly, and only binds with most other elements at extremely high temperatures.

It becomes clear exactly what 1000 atmospheric pressure and a couple of hundred degrees Celsius can do.
The extent of granite's hardness can be demonstrated by the fact that not even tools used for steel processing have an effect on it. Granite can only be tackled using special diamond tools. This offers a particularly attractive solution for those with children partial to performing surface-damaging experiments. Handicrafts which leave unsightly permanent marks and stains on some surfaces meet their match with granite. Granite is extremely hard and presents particularly beautiful finishes. Like marble, granite is sawn into slabs and polished.

Granite panels are just as aesthetically pleasing as marble panels. While marble always presents a streaked appearance, granite looks as if someone has cut through a mass of tiny bubbles which have turned to stone. Circular patterns characterise granite slabs, even if other outlines can also be seen. Even experts can confuse marble and granite upon first glance (although our experts at Bartels Marble and Granite are never fooled!).

Granite and marble are generally the same weight (approx. 2.7 g / cm³), although granite is significantly harder than marble, and even harder than steel!
At www.steinarchiv.de you can find a series of images of marble, granite and other types of natural stone. At Bartels marble and granite stone works, we always have a large selection in stock, and would be delighted to welcome you to our plant to show you the true beauty of these materials.

Betonstein und Marmorwerk Bartels GmbH 2001 – 2023