What Is the Significance of Stripe Patterns on Natural Stone?

When you enter the showroom of a provider of natural-stone slabs and tiles, you are never quite sure about what you will find in terms of colors, surfaces, patterns, and textures. You may have an idea about how some natural stones are supposed to look. For example, marble is known to be porous, crystalline, and often wavy, granite tends to present a granular look with pitting and fissures, while flagstone surfaces present swathes of color or a pebbly look. You may also be surprised by gorgeous striped patterns that tell interesting stories about granite, limestone, and marble. The Geological Meaning of Stripes Depending on how nature has chosen to shape rocky formations of the Earth’s surface, the striped patterns found in natural-stone slabs and tiles denote the passage of geological ages or unique metamorphic processes. Here are three types of elegant striped stones and their significance. If you install them as flooring or countertops, you will be adding a nice touch of geology to your home. White Striped Marble The nearly geometrical striped appearance of this rare marble is believed to have occurred due to rock layers being trapped next to molten lava formations. The white marble layers became liquefied but were able to expand horizontally on the island of Marmara off the coast of Turkey. Marmara is home to many rare marble quarries. In fact, when powerful clans affiliated with Constantine the Great settled there in the 5th century, they promptly set out to build temples and palaces made with the finest marble they could extract. Iron Red Granite This stone, which is usually extracted from quarries in Brazil, has an incredible molecular density that makes it one of the hardest types of granite in the world. Although iron red granite is fairly abundant, it is considered exotic because of its striking look. The swirly red, gray, and black stripes of this stone originated a very long time ago, back when the Earth’s atmosphere was becoming oxygenated and the chemical composition of the surface resulted in iron oxide. In other words, iron red granite is extracted from rusted layers of the planet, and it is bound to continue rusting when exposed to liquid substances. For this reason, it is important to frequently reseal iron red granite with a high-quality granite sealer. Brown Striped Limestone Often called Canadian marble due to being extracted from quarries in the Ontario province, this limestone resembles wooden planks cut from oak trees. Although not as old as iron red granite, each stripe of this limestone denotes the geological passage of time, starting with clay and continuing with minerals, crystals, and compounds. Brown striped limestone is extracted from a quarry that used to be underwater millions of years ago. The shape of the layers in the surface of this striped stone gives you an idea of ancient Canadian topography. The above types of stone, just like all types of natural stone used in the home, need to be cleaned regularly with a stone-safe granite cleaner. At Granite Gold®, all of our products are safe to use on granite, marble, limestone, and all other types of natural stone. If you’d like tips on how to clean your stone properly, get in touch with us today at 1-800-475-STONE.