Instrumental chemical analysis of the more common marbles historically used for decorative purposes or to create works of art

Publisher Summary The chapter describes the basic chemical research on the most common types of marbles used historically for decorative purposes and to create artworks. The chemical characteristics of the various types of marble are important for conservation purposes and for correct identification of the type of marble. Following varieties of marbles were examines: Pentelic marble; Paros marble; white Aphrodisias marble; Altissimo marble; and Carrara marble. Inductively coupled plasma (ICP), X-ray diffractometry, and thermoanalysis (TG, DTG, and DTA) techniques were used for systemic chemical analysis. The chemical information generated from the mentioned tests, accompanied with mineralogical data will speed up the identification of the type of marble. The chapter illustrates the identification method with the help of experiments that were conducted on two questioned samples. The chapter also provides tables and graphs to demonstrate the results obtained from instrumental chemical analyses on various types of marbles.