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Marble
Marble

Limestone
Limestone



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Marble vs Limestone

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Definition

Definition

Marble is a non-foliated metamorphic rock which is composed of recrystallized carbonate which is formed when limestone is exposed to high temperatures and pressures over a long time
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate

History

Origin

Egypt
New Zealand

Discoverer

Unknown
Belsazar Hacquet

Etymology

From the Greek marmaros, shining stone and also from the English word marmoreal meaning marble-like
From lime and stone in late 14th Century

Class

Metamorphic Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Family

Group

-
-

Other Categories

Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Texture

Granular
Clastic or Non-Clastic

Color

Black, Blue, Brown, Grey, Pink, White
Beige, Black, Blue, Brown, Cream, Gold, Green, Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Linen, Pink, Red, Rust, Silver, White, Yellow

Maintenance

More
More

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Veined and Shiny
Rough and Banded

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Bathrooms, Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration, Kitchens, Stair Treads
Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings, Paving Stone
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

-
Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone
Cement Manufacture, Cobblestones, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium

Medical Industry

-
In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Jewellery, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Curling, Laboratory bench tops, Paper Industry, Tombstones, Used in aquariums, Whiting material in toothpaste, paint and paper
Animal feed filler, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Paper Industry, Raw material for manufacture of quicklime, slaked lime, Soil Conditioner, Used in aquariums, Whiting material in toothpaste, paint and paper

Types

Types

Breccia Marble, Carrara Marble, Calacatta marble, Cultured Marble, Polished Marble, Honed Marble, Sand Marble
Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa

Features

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock
Host Rock for Lead, Stalactites and stalagmites are formed from this rock, Zinc and Copper Deposits

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

-
-

Famous Monuments

Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Buland Darwaza in Agra, India, Capitol Hill Building, Washington DC, Charminar in Hyderabad, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, India, Ephesus in Turkey, Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan, Humayun's Tomb in Delhi, India, Jama Masjid in Delhi, India, Lotus Temple in New Delhi, India, Louvre in Paris, France, Mysore Palace in Karnataka, India, Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Palace of Parliament in Bucharest, Romania, Parthenon in Greece, Potala Palace in Lahasa, Tibet, Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, Qutb Minar in India, Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, Russia, St. Peter’s Cathedral in Vatican City, Taj Mahal in Agra, India, Tower of Pisa, Italy, Victoria Memorial in Kolkata, India, Washington Monument, US
Acropolis of Athens in Greece, Agia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Big Ben in London, Charminar in Hyderabad, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, India, Chichen Itza in Mexico, Empire State Building in New York, Khajuraho Temples, India, Kremlin in Moscow, Louvre in Paris, France, Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Potala Palace in Lahasa, Tibet, Wailing Wall in Jerusalem

Sculpture

-
-

Famous Sculptures

Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Bust of Artemis, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Lincoln Memorial in America
Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India

Pictographs

-
-

Petroglyphs

-
-

Figurines

-
-

Fossils

Absent
Present

Formation

Formation

Marble is a metamorphic rock produced from limestone in the earth crust. It is formed by the metamorphism of limestone.
Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is mainly made up of calcium carbonate.

Composition

Mineral Content

Garnet, Graphite, Olivine, Pyrite, Quartz
Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt

Compound Content

CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO, Silicon Dioxide
Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO

Transformation

Metamorphism

Types of Metamorphism

Impact Metamorphism
-

Weathering

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

3-43-4
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Medium Grained
Fine Grained

Fracture

-
Splintery

Streak

White
White

Porosity

Less Porous
Less Porous

Luster

Dull to Pearly to Subvitreous
Dull to Pearly

Compressive Strength

115.00 N/mm2115.00 N/mm2
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect
-

Toughness

-
1

Specific Gravity

2.86-2.872.3-2.7
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.4-2.7 g/cm32.3-2.7 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.88 kJ/Kg K0.91 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant
Pressure Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

China, India
Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam

Africa

Namibia
Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Europe

Italy, Spain
United Kingdom

Others

-
-

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

-
USA

South America

-
Colombia

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria
Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula

Marble vs Limestone Information

Earth’s outer layer is covered by rocks and these rocks have different physical and chemical properties. As two rocks are not same, it’s fun to compare them. You can also know more about Marble and Limestone Reserves. Marble is a non-foliated metamorphic rock which is composed of recrystallized carbonate which is formed when limestone is exposed to high temperatures and pressures over a long time. Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. These rocks are composed of many distinct minerals. The process of formation of rocks is different for various rocks. Rocks are quarried from many years for various purposes. You can check out Marble vs Limestone information and Marble vs Limestone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Marble vs Limestone Characteristics

Though some rocks look identical, they have certain characteristics which distinguish them from others. Characteristics of rocks include texture, appearance, color, fracture, streak, hardness etc. Marble vs Limestone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Marble and Properties of Limestone. Learn more about Marble vs Limestone in the next section. The interior uses of Marble include Bathrooms, Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Entryways, Floor tiles, Homes, Hotels, Interior decoration, Kitchens and Stair treads whereas the interior uses of Limestone include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Marble and Limestone, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Marble in construction industry include As dimension stone and that of Limestone include Cement manufacture, Cobblestones, For road aggregate, Production of glass and ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium.

More about Marble and Limestone

Here you can know more about Marble and Limestone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Marble and Limestone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Marble includes Garnet, Graphite, Olivine, Pyrite, Quartz and mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt. You can also check out the list of all Metamorphic Rocks. When we have to compare Marble vs Limestone, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Marble is available in black, blue, brown, grey, pink, white colors whereas, Limestone is available in beige, black, blue, brown, cream, gold, green, grey, light green, light grey, linen, pink, red, rust, silver, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Marble is Veined and Shiny and that of Limestone is Rough and Banded. Properties of rock is another aspect for Marble vs Limestone. Hardness of Marble and Limestone is 3-4. The types of Marble are Breccia Marble, Carrara Marble, Calacatta marble, Cultured Marble, Polished Marble, Honed Marble, Sand Marble whereas types of Limestone are Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Marble and Limestone is white. The specific heat capacity of Marble is 0.88 kJ/Kg K and that of Limestone is 0.91 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Marble is heat resistant whereas Limestone is pressure resistant.