Marble - centuries -old traditions, features and modern technologies

The natural stone in the modern world has become enormous due to the excellent properties of the rock. A variety of colors, shades and shapes of stone is quite diverse. One of the most famous natural stones is marble. Many marble products of centuries -old prescription and buildings, in the decoration of which this breed was used, have been perfectly preserved to this day. The use of marble in any form will give the room of elegance and chic.

Table of contents:

1. Centuries -old traditions
2. The history of Russian marble
3. Superstition
4. Physico-chemical characteristics
5. Using marble
6. Marble products
7. How to choose marble
8. Marble care

Centuries -old traditions

Translated from Greek, marble means a radiant stone. Since ancient times, people have used marble in the construction and decoration of their dwellings, buildings of ritual and cult, spectacular structures. Marble is surprisingly supple material, which easily obeys to a person. That is why the ancient world left us a rich marble heritage.

In those times, the marble stone was used everywhere. Marble steps led into majestic temples with skillfully cut columns. The mosaic decorated the floor in the dwellings of wealthy citizens and public buildings. From marble, great ancient architects and sculptors created their immortal creations. Parfenon and Acropolis, Nick Samofraki and Venus Miloskaya, Apollo Belvedere and Zeus Olympic, as well as other monuments of ancient culture were built of this natural material.

Marble was widely exploited in ancient Rome. One has only to recall the legendary Carrarian marble, which adorned many luxurious palaces and mausoleums, and later medieval monuments. The masters of the Renaissance adopted the traditions of antiquity and widely used natural stone in their work. Everyone knows such buildings as the sculptures of Michelangelo, the chapel of the Medici, the statues of Donatello, the tomb of the Spanish kings. In a word, the transfer of masterpieces will take a single line.

The revival was replaced by exquisite portals of Rococo and Baroque, and then strict sculptures and buildings of the era of classicism. Roden created his immortal sculptures from marble. This natural stone was widely used in European culture and everywhere around the world. It is enough to recall the majestic Indian Mausoleum Taj Mahal. In three of the seven wonders of the world, in the Alexandrian lighthouse, the mausoleum in Galicarnas, the temple of Artemis in Ephesus used marble is a good score.

The history of Russian marble

The history of Russian marble is no less remarkable. For stone carving, which had just originated and for the manufacture of mosaic floors in Russia used the Carpathian marble of green and white shades, as well as the colorful marble of Tauris. The flowering of marble art in our country was marked by the development of St. Petersburg.

The best architects worked on the construction of magnificent suburban residences and palaces, and marble was an indispensable assistant, which gave one of his own appearance to any architectural construction of solemnity. And in modern Russia, at the same time, the use of marble has not lost its popularity. It was marble that exalted the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, it was to them that the current Manezhnaya Square flaunts.

The initial color of any marble is snow -white, but thanks to the complex geological history of the Earth, it turned out that it was white marble that became a rarity. In the process of geological activity, which has not stopped for millennia, a virgin pure breed was fertilized by streams of alloys and solutions with another composition. As a result, the stone is permeated with striped, muar, spotted and living patterns on gray, pink, yellow, bluish, green, wax, red and blue-black background.

Superstition

Many superstitions are associated with marble, in particular architectural and construction. There is an opinion that dark varieties have better resistance to environmental factors. But, for example, from the stone that was obtained in the south, you should not build houses in the north. However, in fact, everything is different. True marble, regardless of the place of prey and color, perfectly tolerate the heat and frost.

An example of this is massive statues made of white Carrara marble, which symbolize the Tiber and Nile rivers, which now decorate the staircase of the municipality in Rome. There are almost two thousand years to sculptures, besides, nothing threatens them in the next few millennia.

The most famous is Italian white marble. Yellowish marble from Greece are also famous for everywhere. Significant strata of this breed lies in South Africa and North Africa, in the east of the United States and East Kazakhstan, in Armenia and Uzbekistan. In Russia, marble is mined in the Urals and the Far East, in the Krasnoyarsk Territory and Karelia.

Physico-chemical characteristics

The decorative and technical properties of marble make it possible to realize any design ideas. You can erect a house for one hundred rooms, each of them is lined with various varieties and not a single room will repeat the other. The density of marble reaches 2.3 2.6 grams per centimeter of cubic, hardness on the Moos scale - 2.5 - 5.

Marble can consist of calcium carbonate - calcite, or only of magnesium and calcium carbonate - dolomite, or from both natural minerals. Marble almost always contains impurities of other organic compounds and minerals. Such impurities determine the quality of the stone, reducing or increasing its decorative properties and exerting an effect on coloring. For the most part, color marble has a colorful coloring.

The content of iron impurities in the marble of impurities determines its red gamut, the presence of highly dispersed iron sulfide black and blue, the presence of iron-containing silicate silicates is green in color, iron and manganese carbonates, iron hydroxides are responsible for brown and yellow, graphite and bitumen for bluish, gray and black tones. The image on marble depends on the structure and direction of the cut of stone. The drawing and color are manifested after polishing. The structure of marble is homogeneous, spotted and layered.

Using marble

Marble is used by slabs or whole blocks. Ground, piece (saw) and crushed marble acts as a construction stone. Humanity widely uses marble boards that are made of pure calcite marble. Mostly monophonic marble is used in mosaic compositions, round statues and reliefs. Marble crumbs and sand are used for the manufacture of decorative plaster and fillers for concrete.

Marble has magnificent properties that allow a person to use a breed in different fields when creating landscapes, in construction and interior decoration. The use of marble in construction is possible thanks to its hardness: any architectural structure is easily built from marble.

The fine grader, which is inherent in marble, makes marble a malleable breed when processing and allows it to give various forms, which are used with success in the decorative decoration of buildings outside and inside. The color scheme from white to black allows you to use it in a variety of compositions and with any other colors.

The beauty and durability of marble makes it the best building materials, with which only granite can compete. Modern technologies give marble a different look, for example, when facing a basin in marble, aged marble is often used. Brown cladding of buildings does not require any certain skills, since this breed is glued to ordinary tile glue. With the help of marble, you can give an exquisite look to the interior in any style solution.

Marble products

Although the history of marble has more than one millennium, the breed from fashion will never come out. Marble serves as the subject of luxury or simply practical material. For example, a staircase made of natural stone is outside of time and society. It is worth noting that in the construction industry, under the concept of marble, all metamorphic breeds are considered, which differ in the average hardness of marble itself and dense dolomite, conglomerates, carbonate braces and conglomerates, as well as marble -free limestone.

Marble floors are a magnificent decoration of the bathroom furnished in the style of ancient Roman terms, or simply perform a practical function in the hospital ward, laboratory or operating room, because marble is a natural antiseptic. Facing with noble marble since time immemorial is a popular way of wall decoration. It is difficult to find another similar material that will look so wonderful in the lobby or hallway.

Natural marble is snow-white, beige, pink, yellow, brown or red, blue or gray, black and green, which makes it valuable adiative material. It is impossible to list all the shades of marble! In addition, marble can be homogeneously painted, contain various inclusions and veins, have a bizarre texture.

The rich color scheme of the breed provided it with the widest use in almost all types of decoration of the premises: fountains, sculptures, columns, cornices, balusters and so on. Of the marble slabs, plates that have a large area and thickness, make bar racks, marble countertops and window sills. All marble products are chic. Careful grinding and finishing polishing of marble give sculpture an impeccable look.

You can use marble for facing pools and steps of stairs, ceilings and walls. The marble windowsill will last longer than a product made of wood or plastic. Marble fireplaces with amazing speed come into fashion, become an integral attribute of expensive interior and good taste.

One of the interesting incarnations of marble in the house of the sink. Such a luxurious and unusual detail will necessarily cause genuine admiration and interest of your guests. And, of course, a marble mosaic looks unsurpassed, which can change any decor beyond recognition. A special place in the house can take mosaic paintings, which are considered rightfully true works of art. The marble is also irreplaceable in the power of the territories.

How to choose marble

When choosing marble for cladding and finishes, attention should be paid to:
   
1. On the thickness of the layer or tiles, which will be used for finishing.

2. Stone density. There is nothing in common in nature, because even a natural stone is vulnerable to water. When buying marble for decoration of a bath or outdoor placement, it is necessary to take into account its density and granularity. In places where moisture is present, it is not recommended to use loose marble.

3. On the pattern. Natural graphics affects the mental state of a person. The softness of the pattern, the lightness of the halftone, the smoothness of the pattern lines positively affect the well -being of a person, so it is better to apply colorful marble in the rest rooms. For the decoration and cladding of marble of representative premises and offices, active compositions of various drawings, large patterns, original color interspersed, which creates a special visual effect, is well suited.

4. The color of marble. The color is a strong means of influence on people. And choosing a stone for designing your interior, it should be taken into account that the color has a significant energy effect. It acts as a powerful stimulant of activity or vice versa promotes rest, calms and relaxes. Such factors should be taken into account by choosing different stones for the living room or work office.

Marble care

Marble gives the interior of solidity and is considered a symbol of the high status of the owner. The main disadvantage of this natural material lies in the fact that marble is porous and soft, and it is also able to absorb moisture. Therefore, marble requires special care. Marble should be washed with ordinary water, but the use of various cleaners is undesirable. Marble can be conditionally attributed to limestone, and for this reason the breed needs a neutral substance with pH 7. Other means will cause its decomposition.

It is quite difficult to remove the spots from marble. The fluid that fell on it is absorbed into the pores very deeply, and it is impossible to remove it from there. Therefore, for marble for additional protection it is worth applying a special protective coating, which can reduce the effect on the breed of natural destructive effects. With the help of special impregnation, marble will not turn yellow and collapse longer.

Coatings made on the basis of polymers are not suitable for marble, because they simply create a film on a stone that does not have a complete adhesion with a breed and often leaves from the surface. The best coating for marble is the wax, which is present in almost all expensive means that are designed for marble. Wax is a water -repellent material, it clogs all pores and gaps of marble, thereby making it difficult to penetrate the water into marble, giving it a unique brilliance and maintaining color.

Like almost all stones, marble has a crystalline structure. Some time after the decoration of the premises by marble, its structure is disturbed due to the destruction of the connection between the crystals of the marble grid. As a result, recesses occur on the surface. Therefore, marble needs professional cleaning and polishing.

The current society, regardless of many achievements in the creation of artificial stones, is partially returned to knowledge of previous generations. Therefore, the popularity of marble increases every year, and the circle of use of this breed today is quite extensive.