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The
most commonly used today and have been for centuries are granite, marble,
limestone, and slate. The varying degree of processing determines the surface
texture, which inevitably effects the color. The three finishes more often
used are polished, honed and/or stippled {flamed}. Stippling created
by extremely high temperatures leaves a rough, uniform texture and reveals
the highlights of the colored crystals. A honed finish is
a surface that is smooth and uniform but with little or no reflective quality.
The stone can appear to be lighter in color and its grain less apparent.
The polished surface is the result of taking a honed finish
and buffing it with small amounts of water and tin oxide or iron oxide.
The stone is left with a highly reflective, mirror-like finish. The variations
in the composition of the stone become more obvious and the color can appear
to be darker. Quarried throughout the world, the varieties in color
and grain of stone can range in the thousands. |
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