MARBLE MOSAIC

Marble, or more precisely the stone material, was widely used in ancient times. It was mainly used for the creation of floor mosaics because its main characteristic was that of being resistant to wear and atmospheric agents.

MARBLE MOSAIC: CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PERFECT MATERIAL

Marble or stone material can be of various origins and come from different Italian or foreign quarries.
It is a natural element that presents various hardnesses and compositions, with a more or less fine texture and a wide range of shades.
The best material for mosaic, and therefore the one preferred by the mosaicist, is limestone, that is marble and travertine which have uniformity of colour and medium hardness, therefore more suitable for working and cutting.

THE ANCIENT MOSAIC AND THE USE OF MARBLE

Since ancient times, when we spoke of mosaics we inevitably referred to marble, as the perfect material for this type of construction technique for floors, precisely because of its characteristics of good workability and resistance.
Good workability is given by the degree of malleability when cutting the marble slab to obtain the tesserae.
Furthermore, the natural tones of marble were suitable for simulating Roman flesh tones and portraiture.

MARBLE MOSAIC FLOORS

In the opus vermiculatum , marble was the fundamental element that made possible the effective realism of the subjects chosen by the Romans to narrate everyday life.
We find many examples of marble mosaic floors, where the use of marble was privileged and then filled and smoothed in order to create an extremely decorative but functional and perfectly walkable surface.

BUILDING MARBLE MOSAICS

Today, marble is available wholesale from marble workers or from mosaic dealers like our school. You can purchase marble tiles, slabs to cut and mosaicist's tools by clicking here.

It is possible to buy it in sheets, to be cut independently or already sliced ​​into tiles, and it can be treated with solvents for shiny or antique effects.
Using the direct technique, the marble is applied onto a mesh to create mosaic decorations.

MARBLE PROPERTIES FOR MOSAIC

The technical properties of workability of rocks and marbles that are of interest for the composition are hardness and durability.

Hardness refers to the resistance of the material to cutting; for mosaic the most suitable material is the one that maintains a linear and clean cut.

The rocks are classified using a sclerometer with a measurement from 1 to 10 and are divided into: soft, semi-hard which includes many common marbles, i.e. those most used in mosaics, hard and very hard.

The classification is as follows:

• talc
• plaster
• calcite
• fluorite
• apatite
• orthoclase
• quartz
• topaz
• corundum
• diamond.

Durability refers to all those factors that guarantee the resistance of the material to abrasion both through processing machinery and from external chemical, physical and atmospheric agents.

The mineralogical nature of the material itself can change based on the reaction of external elements, determining aesthetic characteristics such as changes in colour or hardness, causing corrosion and degradation of the material.

If you are passionate about mosaics , discover our kits for making mosaics on your own , complete with materials and a video course explaining the steps to follow to create a real marble mosaic!

COURSES FOR THE STUDY OF MARBLE MOSAIC

For 20 years, our school has been dedicated to promoting and spreading the art of mosaic through specific and personalized training courses, DIY mosaic kits and a professional school for mosaicists.