The Art Of Marble Carving
Marble carving is an ancient practice performed vividly across Europe, starting in Ancient Greece; the word itself means crystalline rock or shining stone. Pure white marbles are generally used for sculpture, with coloured ones preferred for many architectural and decorative uses. Different countries are known for different marbles, like Egypt for galala and Sinai pearl marble, Ethiopia for daleti and enda tikurir marble, China for Hàn Bái Yǜ Marable, India for Makrana marble, Czech republic for Český Šternberk marble, etc. you can read it further here
There are many traditional products made of marble, like monuments and statues. Still, there are also some everyday products such as pen holders, paperweights, book holders, cardholders, ashtrays, spoon holders, storage jars, coats, dinner sets, cups, sauce, candle holders, picture frames, mirror frames, incense sticks holders, flower pots, jewellery boxes, etc.
White marble:
It is the best form of marble with natural fineness. It has the most significant market globally, and there is a huge demand for interior design and sculptures. White marble is resilient and stunning; it is also preferred in kitchenware.
Black:
This is quite bold marble when combined with white and gold colour cracks through it. It does offer many eye-catching combinations.
Red:
Red marble adds a stark contrast to anything, and this bright colour will make your interior stand out from the rest. If used properly, it can bring life to any room and works well with white, black, grey, or Calcutta marble.
Brown:
If you are looking for a beautiful stone to match the natural tones of your home or business, brown marble can be your choice! This stone works well on countertops and flooring while highlighting other applications without removing them.
Many other varieties of marble are there, like Pink, Yellow, Green, Grey, etc.
White marble is often used for engraving due to its purest and neutral look, with colours chosen for many architectural and decorative uses. The purest white marble found in makrana is used in marble carving here in Jaipur.
White marble is often used for engraving due to its purity and neutral look
FAMOUS MARBLES FROM DIFFERENT LOCATIONS AROUND THE WORLD
Egypt
Galala Marble: Galala, or Galalah, is an Egyptian limestone extracted from a mountain called Galala found in Suez, Egypt. It was named after the hill, “Galala Marble." Its colours are creamy and creamy white, as variations vary depending on the quarry stones.
Sinai Pearl Marble: The Sinai Pearl is a light beige brown to dark grey in the world with hints of brown made of fossilized sedimentary rock in Egypt.
Milly Grey Marble, Sunny Marble, and Alabaster Marble are a few other marbles found in Egypt.
Tunisia
Giallo Antico: also known as Numidian Marble, was a yellow marble celebrated in Roman times at the site of ancient Chemtou in ancient Symmithu.
China
Hàn Bái Yǜ Marable: A type of white marble used in China for building and sculpting.
India
Makrana Marble: Makrana marble is a type of white marble famous for use in carving and decorating buildings. It was mined in the town of Makrana in Rajasthan, India. It was used to construct a few symbolic monuments, such as the Taj Mahal in Agra and the Victoria Memorial in Kolkata. Makrana marble is on the Global Heritage Stone list.
Ambaji marble: Ambaji white marble is known for its milky white colour with dark veins resembling a map. The colour and texture are very appealing. Ambaji White Marble comes with white paint and a black texture.
Belgium
Noir Belge: Noir Belge (Belgian Black) is a composite term referring to the black limestone found in several Belgian sites.
Griotte: Natural stone has a reddish cherry colour (griotte is a French word meaning Morrello cherry), usually curled with tiny purple dots and white lines formed by Goniatites or later cut. It is common in southern France, the Pyrenees, and southern Belgium.
Czech Republic
Český Šternberk marble: Its an white marble found in Český Šternberk, Benešov District in czech republic.
Nehodiv marble: It’s a grey marble found in Nehodiv, Klatovy District, in the Czech Republic.
Germany
Auerbach marble: German Marble is classified as such because of its composition, and it is from Germany.
Crottendorf Marble: Crottendorf is a German marble, and as such, it is composed of the same stuff that all marble is primarily made of. Crottendorf is a relatively soft stone.
Greece
Parian marble: It is a fine-grained, semi-translucent, pure-white, and entirely flawless marble quarried during the classical era on the Greek island of Paros in the Aegean Sea.
Ireland
Connemara marble is an “Irish green” rare variety of marble found in Connemara, Ireland, with a distinct green colour. It is commonly used as a gemstone and for decorations.
Kilkenny marble: It is a fine-grained, very dark grey carboniferous limestone found around County Kilkenny in Ireland.
Italy
Carrara marble: is a white or blue-grey marble popular for use in sculpture and building decor. These marbles have been quarried since Roman times in the mountains just outside the cities of Carrara in the province of Massa and Carrara in Lunigiana, the northernmost tip of modern-day Tuscany, Italy.
Red Verona Marble: It is a variety of limestone rock that takes its name from Verona in Northern Italy.
North Macedonia
Sivec marble: It is the trademark of the dolomitic marble extracted from the quarries of Mermeren Kombinat A.D., near the town of Prilep in North Macedonia. The fine grain makes it ideal for sculpture and architectural applications.
Romania
Rușchița marble is a reddish, pinkish, or white marble found in Romania. The marble deposit is located in the north of Caraș-Severin County, about 10 km northwest of the village of Rusco Montană, in the Poiana Rusca Mountains.
Spain
Nero Marquina marble: It is a high-quality, black stone marble extracted from the region of Markina, Basque Country, in the north of Spain. This variety of marble gets its black colour from naturally occurring bitumen.
Sweden
Swedish green Marble: It is marble from quarries in Kolmården, in the north-eastern part of the province of Östergötland in Sweden. It is fine-grained, with a variable green colour and attractive veining due to the serpentines in the stone.
Turkey
Bordeaux: a beautiful grey-hued polished marble from Turkey.
Crema Ella: Turkish marble in a subtle beige tone.
United States
Creole marble is Marble from quarries in Pickens County, Georgia, United States It is coarse-grained and displays a white or grey background, while veins or clouds are black or dark blue.
Etowah marble: also called Georgia pink marble, is a marble with a characteristic pink, salmon, or rose colour that comes from quarries near Tate, Georgia.
Well, many other marbles are famous in these countries; if you want to read more, click here.
How do I define or choose a good marble?
The purity of the white marble is defined by the amount of calcium carbonate present in the limestone and the number of impurities in it. The purest white marble found in makrana consists of 99% calcite crystal, making it superwhite.
Marble stones are one of the best options for true history. White marble has become an old way of creating beautiful pieces of art. When shopping for marble, flip through a stone and look for cracks or crevices. Sometimes small cracks are found along the veins in the marble area. Slabs with small cracks can be used in a low-traffic area. If there are wide cracks, they are not good-quality marble.
TOP COUNTRIES PRODUCING BEST QUALITY MARBLE WORLDWIDE
List of the countries producing best marble in global market
Turkey is well known as the largest exporter of marble. Turkish quarries are rich in marble and travertine and have the largest quarries on earth. While Italy is known for the best quality of marble globally, it also has the finest marble globally. Greece, Iran and Spain also have a considerable marble market with different varieties.
What tools do you need to carve the marble?
Various tools used in marble carving process
It is an initial shaping tool that roughens the stone. It comes in different cross-sections for making a different impact on the marble, and a mallet is a hammering tool used with other weights and sizes.
Traditional iron chisels used for shaping the marble
Modern and easily available chisels in the market
STONE FILERS/METALLIC FILERS :
These are rock tools with the textured surface areas used for softening the marble.
Traditional rock filers used for finishing
Well, nowadays, most artisans use these metallic filters.
Available metallic filers are easily available online
Heavy drilling machines are used to drill the raw marble into the required shape and size.
METALLIC ROTARY BURR SET DRILLING MACHINE
Heavy drilling machines
As its name suggests, it is used for cutting the enormous size of marble blocks to make them ready for carving.
Power-cutting machine
It is used for the primary carving process to create the depth and rise; different shapes of blades are used for different needs.
Power buffing machines
It is used for measuring and marking the dimensions and also to measure the depth and rise of the figure.
A measuring compass used to measure the dimensions
They are used for smoothing the surface of the object and making it into its best shape.
Different variety of sandpapers are available in market
PROCESS:
CUTTING:
Firstly Large blocks of stones from mines are taken to various craft centres, and these are then cut out according to the required specifications. For simpler and smaller products, all the slicing is done with the handheld saw. These pieces are then sent to the carving experts.
Heavy cutting machines cut big stones into small ones
MOULD MAKING:
Before starting work on an actual marble piece, the artisans make full-size moulds in clay to see the details and finesse to be included in the final sculpture. This is done for every new product so that they achieve precise finishing in the final sculpture. Also, these moulds help take dimensions and sizes for the final sculpture in marble.
Making of full-size moulds in clay to see the details
DRAWING & MARKING:
Firstly, the pattern’s rough outlines are etched on the stone as guidelines, and essential holes are drilled. Then the fine carving work begins, and textural details are added.
Measuring and marking the dimension using compass
CARVING:
Carving is performed using a handheld drilling machine. Though the tool is operated by hand, it runs on a motor. A variety of bits are used depending on the desired intricacy and effect of the jaali work. Different bits, chisels and files are used for drilling, etching, engraving etc. Since the pieces are hollow, the amount of pressure while carving is crucial—a little bit extra, and the piece would break.
Actual carving and shaping of figure
How can you carve a marble?
Try some soft stone-like soapstone; this helps start the carving process with the actual pieces, and once turned off, it turns off. It’s so easy that you can cut it out with a hammer and chisel from your home tool kit.
After the marble drawn into the basic figure, the work of engraving the details starts
For initial practice, there are many soapstones you can stone carver depending upon the hardness of the stone, defined by the Mohrs hardness scale. Soapstone has a Mohs hardness scale value of 1, while marble rates 3
WHAT IS MOHRS HARDNESS SCALE?
Mineral hardness measures its friction-related resistance, measured by scratching the mineral against another known strength in the Mohs Hardness Scale.
- Seafoam green
- Lemon green
Medium soft
- Charcoal grey
- Deep ocean green
- Forest green
There is some other soapstone that can be categorized as medium, hard, or harder.
FINISHING & BUFFING: After carving, the work of final touch and finishing starts. Initial finishing is done with sandpaper and stone filers, and then buffing machines are used to make it more soft and shiny. And hence, the final product is ready for painting and polishing.
Finishing the figure using sandpaper
Finishing the figure using sandpaper
QUALITY CONTROL MARBLE PRODUCTS.
The inspector will regularly monitor your industry with daily quality reports and production status.
1. Ensuring the same stone
This ensured that we got stone blocks of the same size, uniform, new, fixed, non-cracked, cracked, and hexagonal marble blocks.
2. Color consistency
The selection of stone blocks was performed as control samples. The excavation was carried out on the pits and walls identified earlier to reduce the extent of biodiversity. This includes colour consistency and similarity in the capture of the final product.
3. During Product Testing: At the time of the 50% finished product, we can arrange for the inspector to come to the factory to inspect the raw material, spent development, and finished product. The perfect shape and size of the design will be there, where the geometry plays a major role. Highly fine chisels are used to ensure the required shape.
If there is a defect or major problem, you will be notified. Timely ask the supplier to rework, so it can reduce the mass errors that appear in the product before finishing.
Different marbles have different qualities. While they require different types of machinery to handle, you must ensure what kind of machinery you are using for those marbles that are not slip-resistant or frost-resistant.
4. Pre-Shipping Inspection: As the final product is ready, it’s time to check the correct specifications of the product. Select a sample or do a full inspection to check quality, size, and appearance.
5. Container Loading Containers: You have to check the quantity, packaging, shipping label, size, product appearance, quality, and to make sure they are the same product we tested before; check the condition of the empty container (clean, broken, or with a hole); and supervise the entire loading process to ensure that the goods are safely loaded.
What are the measures to be considered while checking the marble products?
Fissures present:
Fissures formed when two different flows of hot liquid magma merged into a single mass. Fissures exist in marble when it is quarried. Many cracks appear only when viewed closely, but sometimes they can have larger sizes in the prominent areas of the statue. Some people express panic when there are fissures in their marble statues. But cracking is not a mistake.
There is a difference between Fissures & Cracks. Fissures result from natural phenomena, such as geological and environmental forces, mineral lustre, and other conditions, and cracks result from artificial pressure, such as transportation.
Here you can see how the fissures look different from cracks
Veining quality:
During marble formation, natural minerals such as sand, iron oxide, manganese, and clay are incorporated into marbles and form coloured lines known as "veins." The veining should be light and there should be good flow, and it will determine the quality of the product.
Veining should be light, and there should be good flow
Coloration in marble:
The coloring of marbles, or polychromatophilia, may result from natural exposure to stone for diversity. One of the most common definitions of natural marble colour is that the stone directly contacts the leaves or plants.
When allowed to remain in contact, these materials are absorbed through the holes in the marble and can create a fantastic colour. Usually, once the staining source has been removed or the discoloration has been removed, More discoloration of the product will reduce its quality.
more discoloration, the product will reduce its quality.
Pockmarks present:
You are to fill all the pockmarks so that they will no longer be visible using a polymer paste made of marble dust and epoxy.
Proportion:
Marble work needs one of the most delicate hands and keen observation. All the proportions of the artwork must be as they are.
PACKAGING
Packaging plays a vital role in marketing as it is more attractive to customers. Each product is sold according to the customer’s specific requirements to ensure that they are not damaged during transport or unloading at their destination. Specially made wooden pack boxes, along with foam sheets and plastic sheets, are placed around the product to ensure that it will not get cracked while handling it.
For more security, you can do it with double box packaging. First, keep the product in the first box. There should be ‘air’ between your first box and the outer box; you can do that using any foam sheets or airbags. This is the only way to ensure that if your packet is kicked around the outer box, it will be impacted, and the art piece will remain safe. The inner tube should be ‘pulled down’ inside the outer box.
Final packaging and handling
CONCLUSION:
Marble carving is an ancient art practiced worldwide. It is a necessary part of luxury and fashion. Marble is a metamorphic rock reconstituted with carbonate minerals, usually calcite or dolomite. There is a massive demand for marble work, be it interiors or sculptures, worldwide. It is too expensive because of the hard work behind every single piece of design and the availability of the marble. There are different varieties of marbles around various locations in the world due to geographical conditions; Turkey, Italy, Spain, India, and many others are a few significant players in the marble business. Making important artworks of marbles & supplying them is a way long process & there is a crucial role of quality control with industry standards.
A good choice of stone for the living room ensures a reasonably high value. Marble is a highly respected, timeless item that adds beauty and style to any interior design.
