Granite has become a very popular natural stone used in our homes. One of the main reasons of this is that it just looks so luxurious but it’s also very heard wearing and relatively easy to keep clean. Granite worktops and countertops are now quite ubiquitous in many homes across the world and granite floor tiles are increasingly found within houses.

Granite itself is found in many countries but the most commercial quarries for this igneous rock are found in Finland, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, India and in African countries such as Namibia, Zimbabwe and Angola. As a material it was used in construction by the Ancient Egyptians and the Red Pyramid of Egypt is famous for the light crimson hue of it’s exposed granite surfaces.

Popular types of granite – black galaxy granite is one of the worlds most popular choices although it’s very success is causing a problem in that you need to be sure of it’s quality. Black Galaxy is mined in Andhra Pradesh, India and can be broadly split into 3 types – these being large specked black galaxy, medium specked and small specked – depending on the size of the ferrous rich Enstatine, gold colored specks. Originally this granite was known as Star Galaxy and since the volume mined from this location is relatively low, it does not reconcile to the number of dealers purporting to sell it. Care is therefore needed when buying it.

Most sky blue granite varieties are mined in Brazil and Zambia. The best quality material has a medium to fine grained crystalline groundmass composed of blue, white, and black crystals. In some varieties there are additional greenish colored crystals as well.

Homogenous blue granite varieties tend to be expensive and are typically mined in Norway and the Ukraine. Granite colors of blue homogeneous stones range from light to dark blue with many hues and shades in between. Homogeneous blue granite is used on both interiors and exteriors. This stone is used for flooring, facings, countertops, and in luxury furnishings.

Copyright Ian Taylor and The Tile and Stone Blog.co.uk, 2013. See copyright notice above.