Marble is a metamorphosed carbonate rock (limestone or dolomite rock) or simply a carbonate rock that was subjected to heat and pressure. In its pure form, marble is a white stone with a crystalline and sugary appearance, consisting of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). True marble forms from limestone but there is also dolomitic marble, which forms when dolomite CaMg(CO3)2 undergoes metamorphism. (hardness, properties)

Most marble forms at convergent plate boundaries where large areas of earth’s crust are exposed to regional metamorphism. During metamorphism, calcite recrystallizes and the texture of the rock changes. In the early stages of the limestone-to-marble transformation, the calcite crystals in the rock are very small and as metamorphism progresses; the crystals grow larger and become easily recognizable as interlocking crystals of calcite with a characteristic sugary sparkling appearance.

Usually, marble contains other minerals, including quartz, graphite, pyrite, and iron oxides. These minerals can give marble a pink, brown, gray, green, or variegated coloration. Marble is one of the most widely used rocks due to its many unique properties that make it valuable in different industries. For its chemical properties marble is used in pharmaceuticals and agriculture, for its beauty it’s used in architecture and sculpture making, for its optical properties it’s used in cosmetic, paint and paper manufacturing.  It is also used to produce animal supplements, as a construction aggregate among other uses.

Some of the most iconic monuments made of marble include; The Washington Monument in Washington, USA, built from 1848 to 1884 and Taj Mahal in India