Granite is a common and very common type of felsic intrusive igneous rock. Granite is medium to coarse in texture, occasionally with a few individual crystals larger than the mass of the soil that form a rock known as porphyry. Granites can be pink to dark gray or even black, depending on their chemistry and mineralogy. Granite outcrops tend to form rounded clumps and towers. The granites sometimes occur in circular depressions surrounded by a chain of hills, formed by the metamorphic aureole or hornfels.

Granite is an igneous rock and is formed from magma. Granitic magma has many potential origins, but it must invade other rocks. Most granite intrusions are located deep within the crust, generally more than 1.5 kilometers and up to 50 km deep within the thick continental crust. The origin of granite is controversial and has led to various classification schemes. The classification schemes are regional; there is a French scheme, a British scheme and an American scheme. This confusion arises because classification schemes define granite by different means. Generally, the ‘alphabet soup’ classification is used because it classifies according to the genesis or origin of the magma.

Ancient uses of granites

Granite is almost always massive (without internal structures), hard and resistant and has therefore gained widespread use as a building stone. The Red Pyramid of Egypt, named for the light crimson hue of its exposed granite surfaces, is the third largest of the Egyptian pyramids. The Menkaure pyramid was built with blocks of limestone and granite. The Great Pyramid of Giza contains a huge granite sarcophagus made from “Aswan Red Granite”. The mostly ruined Black Pyramid, dating from the reign of Amenemhat III, once had a pyramid of polished granite or cornerstone, now on display in the main hall of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Many of the great Hindu temples in South India are made of granite. There is a large amount of granite in these structures. They are comparable to the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Use of granites in the current era

Granite has been widely used as dimension stone and as floor tiles in commercial and public buildings and monuments. With increasing amounts of acid rain in some parts of the world, granite has started to supplant marble as a monument material, as it is much more durable. Polished granite is also a popular choice for kitchen countertops due to its high durability and aesthetic qualities.

Engineers have traditionally used polished granite surfaces to establish a reference plane, as they are relatively waterproof and inflexible. Sandblasted concrete with a high aggregate content has a similar appearance to raw granite and is often used as a substitute when the use of real granite is not practical. Due to the particular rarity of granite, the best stones can cost up to $ 1,500.

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