Statuario marble

Telling it apart

A clean white background, whiter than Carrara, with sharp grey veins that are wider and further apart. Calacatta often has a slightly ivory background and golden or brown veins. Dealers mix the names up, so we go by the photo of the actual slab, not the label.

Bathroom walls

We fit it in large panels 1.2 to 2 cm thick, bonded over waterproofing. A full-height panel lets the vein run from floor to ceiling. It's heavy, about 32 kg per m² at 1.2 cm, and the wall has to be flat to within a few millimetres over two metres or the panel sounds hollow. With smaller tiles you lose the run of the vein, but fitting is simpler.

Fireplaces and tables

Its fine grain carves and mouldings well, profiled surrounds, consoles, turned legs. The heat of a closed stove is no problem, direct flame is what to avoid. A 2 cm table top weighs about 54 kg per m², worth knowing the day you move house.

What we advise against

A bar top with lemon going round, a busy floor, and outdoors. The fine grain has a downside: acid marks show more on polished Statuario than on a cloudier marble. In a kitchen we'd point you to honed.

Choosing it

Look at the slab in daylight. A background that looks white under strip lights can go grey outside. Ask too whether the slab has been resin-filled on the surface to close micro-cracks. The workshop is open on Saturdays from 10am to 4.30pm if you'd like to talk about it in front of a stone.

See marble wall cladding, fireplaces and Carrara. Phone 07 45 20 76 39.