You might have stunning marble countertops in your kitchen, but how much do you really know about this amazing stone?

Marble was deemed a valuable material ages ago for its striking beauty as well as its extreme strength. It was quickly popularized by the Ancient Greeks in their use of the stone in both art and architecture. Its name, “marble” actually comes from the Greek term for “shining stone.” The value of marble has only increased in our current day, making it one of the most sought after stones for kitchen countertops & other home purposes.

The extraction process for getting marble from the earth into your kitchen is long and involved. Once geologists have located a marble quarry, a diamond-tipped drill bit is used to extract samples of the stone in order to ensure its quality as well as to figure where to begin the digging. It can take up to a few months for the initial digging to be complete before the extractors even get to the marble!

Once the proper cuts have been made into the earth, a “bench wall” of marble is detached using dynamite. This huge wall is then cut into smaller blocks of marble – though these “smaller” blocks usually weigh between 15,000 and 25,000 pounds!

If you’re interested in learning more, check out this beautiful short film called “Il Capo (The Chief)” published by Nowness depicting scenes from marble extraction in the Italian Alps (stills above are from this film). Watch the film here: bsyl.ink/Il-Capo.

If you’re a marble-lover and are ready to install some gorgeous marble countertops in your home, we’re here to help. Give us a call today: (818) 860-7142.

Works Cited:

Dilthey, Max Roman. “How Does Marble Get Mined From a Quarry?” Sciencing.com , Sciencing, 2 Mar. 2019, sciencing.com/marble-mined-quarry-4567716.html.