The first slab looks like Mont Blanc from Brazil. The second one looks like Montblanc from Africa.

Here is what you need to know.

I don't like these mystery stones. I recommend granite rather than quartzite or marble for a kitchen counter.

To save money you could consider man-made quartz.

Here' another link

RES I am not a fan of quartz. You are correct, mine is made in Brazil. I do have a sample but it is not from my stone but I can still test it to see how it does. The slab will be going in two bathrooms and a laundry room.

Pam I have read Karin's thread extensively but thank you for posting it. I will see how the lemon and other acids react to the sample. I too seem to end up liking marbles and chose Wicked White for my island but had it leathered which should help (it is a dolomite). My fabricator is well known to those in the stone business and they all say he is excellent so I feel good about that.

I figured the second was the marble because it looks like marble. I just wondered why they had the same name pretty much and looked so different. I was hoping Karin might come along and give me some facts on both stones. I find it very interesting.

Did you get Fusion Blue for your kitchen? I think I must know most quartzite's by now I've been looking at them for over 7 months. lol

There is no industry enforced standardization of stone names. Distributors and slab yards can and do call the same stone by a half dozen different names, depending on who the end customer might be. The only way to tell what any stone may be is through the testing that Karin outlines in her series on stone. An educated guess would say that the last stone is marble, but your own tests will say for sure.

You can also do the porosity test by placing your sample in half inch of water and seeing how much it wicks up the water after a period of time. Karin_mt has a thread on this too, with several examples she tested with photos.

Your stone could be quartzite, be a hard stone, but still be porous. See the threads by mjamjam (or something like that) and her staining issues.

My Taj Mahal quartzite is pretty bullet proof. I left my sample sitting in water for hours and it did not absorb/wick up the water at all.

?? Lemon juice is quite acidic. It has a pH between 2-3. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-ph-of-lemon-juice-608890

Yeah, lemon juice is what people often complain etches their marble. And I like a lot of drinks with lemon in them (or lime) so it was a good test. Here is a pic of the quartzite I went with. They called it Ocean Blue, I think. I found nada online about it, but this was it when we were still painting & getting stuff installed (but the dishwasher was hooked up again, as seen on the left!).

I guess I was wrong. Sorry for the distraction.

"Lemon juice in its natural state is acidic with a pH of about 2, but once metabolized it actually becomes alkaline with a pH well above 7. So, outside the body, anyone can see that lemon juice is very acidic."

Not a distraction snowcountry nor a big deal. I'll have to find that sample and test it. Was hoping there would be more people on here who had the same Mont Blanc I have on hold and could tell me their thoughts.

My quartzite is from Brazil and looks very similar to your slab that is on hold but was labeled Quartzite Gioia. I wonder if different names are used for the same quartzites.

anyway, the two quartz choices that I liked did not come in jumbo slabs. I would have loved marble but DH said no and would not budge. Loved black brushed granite but thats a long story. So, I went with this quartzite and it has been absolutely bulletproof. No regrets.

Visual resemblance and a supposed identical country of origin doesn't mean that anything called with the same name is "the same". Unless someone in your area has bought one of those exact slabs, any other experiences with a similar named, or similar looking stone, won't be applicable to the stone at your fabricator's.

Thank you ILoveRed. i want to say I saw a slab with that name as well but do not remember it looking like my slab otherwise I would have considered it but in your picture it sure does. It amazes me how many different slabs out there could be the same but have different names, or have the same name but look different.

I read that Karin had said if you see cross bedding it is a good sign it is quartzite. My sales girl said the whiter Monte Blanc is the marble but who knows? I do not trust what they tell me. I bet my fabricator would know if he would call me back....

Your countertop is gorgeous but then so is your entire house!

live_oak_wire too bad that isn't the case because it would sure make our lives easier!

***Edited to say I tested my sample (which has not been sealed) with water, lemon juice and vinegar for only 10 minutes and all left wet marks on it however, it did scratch glass. Is this only because it was not sealed? Argghhh.

I spoke to my stone guy - and he explained that there is a marble from Brazil which is a natural stone (it looks like your 2nd picture). There is a quartzite that is supposed to look like the marble - which is what I believe your first picture is. We went with the Brazilian marble as he said it would be a lot less maintenance than the Italian marble we had originally wanted.

We installed quartzite in our kitchen (2012). Not sure what the stone was called but looks more like Mont Blanc from Brazil. After 8 years and 2x renters its still going strong. We never sealed and cooked all sorts of things. The espresso never made any stain. The installer was horrible as you can see the edge was not mitered. We are currently in the process of doing another kitchen and going with Mont Blanc Quartzite and keeping our fingers crossed. We have a lot of marble surfaces and nothing comes close to the beauty, but we are super careful around it.

i am between mont blanc and quartz also. did you finish the new kitchen with the mont blanc? can i see photos??

I’d love to see photos and hear feedback as well.

We purchased “Monta Blanc” slabs and they were labeled as a quartzite. When the fabricator started cutting it he determined it was in the marble family, which he knew we didn’t want. Be careful!

@Pam A, if you are still on Houzz, how is your Ocean Blue holding up? Do you have more photos of the finished kitchen? I found some of this quartzite and I love it but I wasn't sure how it would look installed and I can't find any photos of it in someone's kitchen.

@J Pru, the only issue we had was a crack we could feel but not see ... right under the place we used an old school crock pot. The stone place came out and fixed it pretty easily. I have accidentally bashed things against the edge near the sink (misjudged the clearance I had when loading the dishwasher). Each time I braced for a chip or fracture, but nope. There are 2 places along the island edge that look to me like they might chip but so far, nothing. I was told the stone is very hard, but also can be brittle because it is so hard. These spots I keep looking at are where a striation sort of intersects the edge of the counter. But again ... they are not moving.

Once we got the kitchen mostly done I sorta stopped taking pictures of it. So most of my more recent pics are from my Halloween hobby (we decorate the yard pretty intensely). The most recent pic is from last year's metamorphosis of a Home Depot Anaconda prop to a sea monster.

Good luck with your decision!

I'm not an expert, but based on my experience going to lots (and lots and lots) of stoneyards, I would guess that the top slab is quartzite and the bottom is a dolomite or marble.

Mine was called a quartzite and it turns out was Dolomite - which etches and is soft 🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️

I should have said it was a different one but same issue

I ended up with a different countertop that is also dolomite. I got it leathered so the etching does not really show at all and I do love it.

We just installed Mont Blanc marble. It is gorgeous!

Yes it is

Our old house had from what I was told (?) white princess or white fantasy or super white stone from Brazil. Quartzite Dolomite Marble who knows. I never sealed it and I assume it was sealed by the fabricator. I wipe off the counters and the polished surface had enough swirls that hid any dull spots that may be considered mild etching from sauces (?). I loved the depth and luminosity of this natural stone. If I find something similar I’ll install this again for our new build 12 ft island and perimeter countertops. The man made materials are just not the same. The buyer and real estate agents all loved the stone and nobody noticed the small etch imperfections.

OK, I know that this is a 4 year ago message, but I read so many missinformation.

I'm Brazilian and work with Natural Stones.

The First one if the Mont Blanc Quartzite, the second one is the Mont Blanc Marble (calcite).

Both are natural stones, but complely different compositions.

Quartzite is more idicated for a countertop kitchen, but if you want put the marble, is also possible, you just need to have attention with some materials

I have selected Mont Blanc for my kitchen to be installed next month. T The stone yard had it listed as quartzite but on our third visit back they had a sign posted on it that said ot was ”Soft.” In soeaking to the sales rep there she indicated that it’s a hard marble. It does have some of the sparkle that dolomites have. My slabs are leathered. She would not tell us too mich other than it needs to be sealed and to speak to our fabricator about its durability. I looked everywhere in two ststes. There was nothing i loved as much as this.

Hi, I ended up having Super White (leathered) put on my island. I absolutely love it. They labeled it quartzite but it is really dolomite. It is probably my favorite part of the kitchen. If you truly love it, buy it. I have had it since 2019 with grandchildren and all. I do wipe up stains within hours so not staining yet. I do see a few small spots that may be etching but you have to be looking at it just right, kind of sideays with the sun on it. No one else notices. I would do it again. I run my hands over it every once in awhile. I really love it. No regrets!

Can you leather the marble Mont Blanc?