Nero Impala Granite (Bon Accord)
Nero Impala granite is dark grey almost black in colour with a speckled complexion. It is quarried from the Bushveld rocks in the Rustenburg1 region of South Africa. Nero Impala is often referred to as Rustenburg and Bon Accord Granite. Nero Impala and Rustenburg are the same stone. Bon Accord granite is similar but has a larger grain. Bon Accord granite is also quarried in South Africa in the town of Bon Accord (hence the name) which is just north of Pretoria.
Nero Impala and Bon Accord are dark grey and speckled in complexion when looked at up close but often appear black from a distance.
Both of these stones are gabbroic rocks2 which come from the largest and most economically important igneous intrusion in the world. The igneous intrusion is called the Bushveld Igneous complex3 (this can be seen in the image below). This area covers over 26,000 square miles and both Nero Impala and Bon Accord are extracted from the south-western perimeter.
Magma intruded this area approximately 2 billion years ago. As this magma cooled, heavier metals settled out into distinct layers that today form very rich ore bodies. Today this area supplies a wide range of precious elements including chromium4, platinum, vanadium, iron and tin.
Geologically Nero Impala is made up of Norite composed mainly of colourless plagioclase feldspar and brownish grey orthopryoxene, or gabbro in which clinopryoexen is more abundant. The dark colouration of Nero Impala is due to the presence of metal oxide inclusions.
Nero Impala granite can be used in both commercial and residential settings. It is often seen used as cladding to store fronts, in granite worktops, black granite dining tables and other forms of luxury furniture. The beauty of this stone is sometimes underestimated when the material is looked at in slab form but when it is deployed of an item of furniture is comes to life. This is evident in the granite coffee table pictured below.
This granite has been popular across the globe for decades due to it's dark colour and durability. If you are looking for a dark granite Nero Impala is one of the very best choices you can make.
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