A Guide to Indian Statuario Marble

Of all the white marbles, Indian Statuario is the one sculptors have prized for centuries. Michelangelo carved from it. Its name comes from the Italian for statue. For a made-to-order piece meant to last generations, it remains the benchmark against which other white stones are measured.

Where it comes from

Indian Statuario is quarried in the marble belt of Rajasthan, around Banswara. The best blocks come from a small number of quarries, which is part of why it is rare and sought after. Each block is unique, and a piece is only as good as the block it is cut from. We select the block with you before any cutting begins.

How to recognise it

Indian Statuario has a luminous, almost translucent near-white ground crossed by bold, decisive grey veins, often with a faint warm gold thread. It is more dramatic than the softer, greyer whites of the region, and less busy than heavily veined imported marbles. The veining in Indian Statuario tends to run in confident diagonal lines, which is why we often orient a block so a single vein runs unbroken across a piece.

Where it belongs

Indian Statuario suits pieces where the stone is the subject: a console, a low table, a basin, a sculptural object. Because it is a true marble, it is softer than granite and develops a gentle patina over time. Many of our clients come to love that patina as the record of a piece being lived with.

Living with it

Sealed on delivery and wiped with a pH-neutral cleaner, Indian Statuario asks for little. Keep acids such as citrus, wine and vinegar off the surface, blot spills rather than wipe them, and use coasters under glasses. Treated with that small amount of care, a Indian Statuario piece only grows more beautiful.