How To Identify Marble Rock

One of the finest materials to use in building is marble.

How to identify marble rock.

A fake marble surface is often as aesthetically pleasing as a real one but it s important to be able to identify the difference so as not to pay the price of real marble when you re getting a considerably cheaper fake. Because of this the surface of marble shows scratches and wear. Marble is considered to be a strong hard stone even though its primary mineral calcite only has a mohs hardness of 3. Marble tends to be light in color.

Marble is a metamorphic rock that forms when limestone is subjected to the heat and pressure of metamorphism. Marble is one of the most common metamorphic rocks to be used in countertops and can be easily identified by the distinctive veins common in most marble surfaces. It s a natural form of rock from the earth so its colors and patterns are unique. These veins form when the marble goes through its molten phase and are often composed of minerals like quartz feldspar or biotite though not every slab of marble has visible veins.

Marble forms at many temperatures and pressures. Igneous sedimentary or metamorphic. Marble can be scratched with a metal blade. The visible crystals in marble give it a characteristic granular surface and appearance but there are other properties used to identify the rock.

If the rock can t scratch glass is clearly metamorphic but the grains don t seem to have any clear orientation or pattern you are most likely working with marble. Non glass marbles marbles have been made from non glass materials such as wood clay and stone for hundreds if not thousands of years. Limestone or dolostone environment. Authentic marble is a metaphoric rock formed by applying heat to limestone forming crystals of calcite a relatively soft mineral.

Learning the characteristics of marble will help you identify it on sight. Marble is a metamorphic rock that is created when limestone is subjected to a considerable amount of heat and pressure within the earth s crust making it a dense and durable material. Holing these samples up to the light and slowly turning. Visit this section for a brief history of handmade marble manufacture and to see an image library to help you identify various types of handmade marbles.

It is composed primarily of the mineral calcite caco 3 and usually contains other minerals such as clay minerals micas quartz pyrite iron oxides and graphite under the conditions of metamorphism the calcite in the limestone recrystallizes to form a rock that is. By comparing your rock sample with photographic examples you can identify key characteristics such as how the rock was formed what minerals and other materials it contains and where the rock may have come from. Identify marble by looking for grains that seem to have no pattern.