marble

SRI Petrography ID: 49

Laas
Südtirol

Names

[de]	Marmor
[en]	marble

Description

metamorphic rock composed of Calcite or Dolomite crystals. The crystalline texture is the result of metamorphosis of limestone or dolostone by heat and pressure and the influence of aqueous solutions.
Marbles are variable in grain size and colour (due to impurities), are often massive, but can also show banding and foliation.

Color

big variability, mostly (snow-)white to grey or yellow-brown, sometimes also black, bluish, shade of red or pink

Grain Size

Fine grained, medium or coarse grained

Texture

variable: mostly massive, sometimes foliated or banded

Minerals

Calcite and dolomite as main minerals, often quartz, mica, graphite, tremolite

Occurences

Greek main land and islands, Turkey, Alps, Italy

Comments

Commercially, the term "marble" includes all polishable decorative calcium-rich rocks as well as some serpentinites, in some cases even polishable granite is called „marble“. Marbles are used for buildings and monuments, decoration, statuary, tabletops and novelties. The most expensive variety, so called „statuary marble“, should be pure white and of uniform grain size.

Classification