Granite can be defined as "a very hard natural igneous rock formation of visibly crystalline texture formed essentially of quartz and orthoclase or microcline."

Granite is one of the hardest stones available. It is a crystalline igneous rock formed from deposits from deep within the Earth. Massive molten structures from deep within the Earth’s mantle have cooled to form granite.

Its variety of colour and unique heat and scratch resistant properties makes it ideal for use as a work-surface or as flooring or for use as general purpose external and internal cladding, taking advantage of its hard wearing characteristics.

Granite was used by the ancient Egyptians for building, generally as a lining material for chambers and passages, interior structure of temples, for door frames, and as facing stones

Molten rock, also known as magma, exists under conditions of extreme pressure and temperature deep inside the Earth. During volcanic eruptions, some of this molten rock is ejected onto the surface of the Eartch, or beneath oceans, and cools to form an extrusive igneous rock, principally basalt.

Granite is formed from magma that remains inside the Earth and is an intrusive igneous rock. This rock cools more slowly than extrusive rock. This results in crystallisation which gives granite its distintive crystalline appearance.

Granite is composed of feldspar, quartz, and mica and is usually whitish or gray with a speckled appearance caused by the darker crystals. Potash feldspar imparts a red or flesh color to the rock.

After formation, subterranean granite masses are forced to the surface of the Earth and transformed into mountain ranges by the massive forces of tectonic movement.

Although primarily used in the UK to form cobbles and kerbing, granite provides a very tough medium. There are only a few quarries left producing granite for construction which are based in Cornwall, The Lake District, North Wales and Scotland. Their main products are used in the aggregate industry with a small percentage destined for use as paving.

As a result, most of the granite used in the UK is imported from countries such as Portugal. Here a variety of methods are used to quarry the stone. Granite destined for sawing is quarried in blocks of between 1,000 and 5,000 tonnes.

These are then broken down to smaller blocks of between 15 and 25 tonnes and processed with frame or circular diamond tipped saws. Even with the advanced technology available in the quarrying industry, the production of commercial granite requires considerable energy and effort due to the density of the raw product.