Hello everyone, welcome to the material investigation team of this issue
Today our protagonist is the granite element
We have studied the marble element before, but compared with this very high-class noble stone, granite seems a bit embarrassing.
△This is granite
Imagine that in the past few years, sandstone, terrazzo, and slate have become popular. Even bricks and other debris have become popular with loft. Granite is still doing what it should do. This Very unscientific.
Good looks may be a reason.
After all, decoration is a big deal, just like finding a wife. No one wants to marry an ugly wife who can't get out of the hall. In terms of pattern alone, granite is such an ugly daughter-in-law. After all, it is "naturally freckled" and has an "old-fashioned color scheme." At first glance, it looks like it belongs to the poor and lower-middle peasant class.
Little did they know that this plain-looking Gray Gushule Liang turned out to be a hidden rich woman with the blood of an emperor.
The history of granite as a building material can be traced back to the Neolithic Age 10,000 years ago. For example, the Ximu City stone shed in Liaoning, my country, uses granite.
△The ugly and stylish stone shed
Whether it is the application method, or the type and mining volume of the rock itself, China's utilization of granite materials is ahead of foreign countries. From the granite ancient tombs of the Yin and Shang Dynasties to the present, granite has been widely used in palaces, mausoleums, bridges, Gardening, etc.
But if you want to illustrate the noble status of granite in our country, it must be the Monument to the People's Heroes.
△This giant monument weighing 60 tons is made of Chinese gray granite
In other ancient foreign civilizations, there are also many buildings that used granite. For example, the pyramids, which were the tombs of ancient Egyptian emperors, used granite for their internal tomb chambers and passages.
It is said that the ancient Roman Colosseum originally had a large number of granite decorative exterior walls, but they were all demolished by Napoleon. After the great emperor left for the west, he also used precious purple-red granite to make his coffin. It seems that the French boss was particularly fond of granite.
△Now only the mottled Colosseum remains
△Napoleon's Tomb
Even the great Spanish architect Mr. Gaudí also likes to use granite elements. His work, the Bishop's Palace of Astorga, uses a large amount of gray granite decoration. The irregular structure of the granite is indeed in harmony with his non-linear design.
△The fairy-tale Bishop’s Palace of Astorga
△Granite columns in Gaudí’s buildings
From the royal palace to private houses, we can now see many types of granite buildings with a wide span. This is not to say that other stones are not used a lot, but because granite is real——
The quartz content of granite is more than 20%, and can reach up to 60%, so its model hardness can reach level 7.
What is the concept of level 7? Marble is only grade 3-4. Most of the knives, tableware, metal utensils, etc. in our lives have Mohs hardness of only about 5. Mohs grade 7 is basically equivalent to being invulnerable.
The granite we mostly use to make cabinet countertops and cabinet bodies is a type of granite. It can be used for chopping bones or vegetables.
△Granite Countertop
On the other hand, granite also has various sturdy properties such as corrosion resistance, high strength, and low water permeability. Therefore, until now, granite is often used in fences, railings, public floors, sidewalks, and outdoor sculptures around the world. Even large grinding tools.
△Granite Bench
We said at the beginning that granite is ugly. Indeed, compared with the alluring marble, granite is just plain on the street. But if placed among countless stones, granite’s appearance can at least be the runner-up.
And because of the extensive reserves of granite, she is involved in the origins of many decoration styles, for example,
△Chinese courtyard railings, floors and stone tables and stools
△St. Stephen's Cathedral, the classical European columns and carvings are all granite
△ Even Northern European houses have granite
Granite elements are relatively rare among other materials, but it cannot be said that they are not absent. In recent years, many granite-like ceramic tiles, artificial stones or composite panels have been produced.
△Granite tiles modern decorative effect
This means that it’s not that granite cannot be ignited, but that it hasn’t ignited yet. Maybe next year's trend will be hers.
As for what exactly is the beauty of granite in decoration?
We will leave it to the next issue for analysis.
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See more decoration tips~
(This article is provided by the enterprise)
