What are the gold flecks in Black Galaxy granite, and is it durable in a bathroom?
Last updated November 2026.
Quick answer
- Look
- Black ground with gold-colored specks
- Fleck mineral
- Bronzite (iron-rich enstatite), per Litos
- Rock type
- Gabbric anorthosite, sold as granite
- Quarry area
- Chimmakurthi, Ongole district, Andhra Pradesh
- Mohs (Litos)
- About 4.5; other sellers say higher
The gold flecks in Black Galaxy are bronzite, an iron-rich pyroxene mineral set in a black ground. Litos calls the rock a gabbric anorthosite, so it is not true granite. It polishes well and works for vanity tops and walls; a trade source rates it moderately hard.
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What are the gold flecks in Black Galaxy granite?
Litos, a stone trade publication, explains that the gold specks come from ferrous-rich enstatite, known as bronzite, a pyroxene mineral. Pyroxene is also the main dark mineral of gabbro, which Wikipedia describes as a coarse-grained, low-silica rock built from pyroxene and calcium-rich plagioclase. Litos gives the technical name for Black Galaxy as gabbric anorthosite.
In plain terms the black ground is dark pyroxene-rich rock, and the gold sparkle is flecks of a lustrous pyroxene catching the light. There is no gold in it.
What are the properties of Black Galaxy granite?
| Property | Black Galaxy granite |
|---|---|
| Look | Black background with gold-colored specks [1] |
| Cause of the gold | Ferrous-rich enstatite (bronzite) [1] |
| Technical name | Gabbric anorthosite [1] |
| Hardness | About 4.5 on Mohs, called moderately hard [1] |
| Speck grades | Large, medium and small speck [1] |
| Quarries | About 40, over 400 acres, near Chimmakurthi, around 350 km north of Chennai [1] |
| Other names (MSI) | Nero Galaxy, Star Galaxy; black with small gold or white flecks [2] |
| Finish and variation (MSI) | Polished only; variation low [2] |
| Sealing, very dark granite | Very low porosity, about every 3–5 years [4] |
Numbers in brackets refer to the sources at the end of this page. Natural stone varies block to block.
Planning a piece in Black Galaxy granite?
Tell us about the room. We reply within one business day with options, and every quote gives the exact dimensions and weight of the piece.
Is Black Galaxy softer than other granites?
One source says so. Litos puts the hardness around 4.5 on the Mohs scale, moderately hard, and calls interior use ideal. That is softer than the feldspar (6) and quartz (7) of a typical granite, though other sellers publish 6 or 7. We could not confirm any figure from a laboratory report.
For a vanity top, the safe approach is to treat it as dense but not scratch-proof: keep abrasive pads away, avoid dragging metal tools across it, and ask for ASTM test data if the figure matters.
How do you choose between large, medium and small flecks?
Litos sorts Black Galaxy into large-specked, medium-specked and small-specked. It also notes white and black lines in almost every quarry, and that prices are set by the number and color of lines. MSI lists the stone as black with small gold or white flecks and low variation.
| Speck size | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Large | Bigger gold plates, visible at arm's length |
| Medium | Mid-size plates |
| Small | Fine flecks, a subtler sparkle |
Three grades per Litos, grouped by speck size. The right-hand descriptions are our reading of those names, not published specifications.
Where is Black Galaxy quarried?
Litos places the quarries at Chimmakurthi village in Ongole district, Andhra Pradesh, about 350 km north of Chennai. It counts around 40 quarries over 400 acres, many deep underground, and describes the stone as one of the more expensive granites in the world because good recovery is limited. This is general geology and trade information about the variety, not a statement about any particular supplier.
Is Black Galaxy suited to bathroom vanity tops, shower walls and floors?
MSI lists countertops, bathroom vanity walls and flooring, in polished only; its shower wall entry is blank. A very dark granite needs sealing only about every 3–5 years according to SlabWise. Polished floors are slippery, so shower areas should be checked with a licensed installer and local code.
Why is Black Galaxy priced above other black granites?
Litos gives several reasons. It says good deposits are limited in almost every quarry, recovery is poor, and some quarries now extract from depths over 100 meters, which raised costs. Only about 30% of production is big gang-saw blocks, above 2.40 × 1.20 × 1.00 meters. It calls Black Galaxy one of the more expensive granites in the world.
Litos also says that prices are set by the number and color of lines in a block. A slab with fewer white and black lines costs more, which is worth knowing when a quote seems low.
How do you keep polished Black Galaxy looking right?
Warm water and a few drops of dish soap on a microfiber cloth, then dry it, is the routine SlabWise gives for granite. Standing hard water leaves mineral deposits that dull the finish. Leave out bleach, ammonia, vinegar, lemon juice and abrasive pads.
The gold flecks catch light, but dried water shows against the black ground. Drying matters more than usual.
Does Pietra Fonte make pieces in Black Galaxy granite?
We don't currently offer granite. Dark pieces from us are marble: see Nero Marquina marble, or ask through the bespoke page about a custom stone. Stones we carve are listed at /stones.
Sources
Every piece is made to order. Tell us about the room and we reply within one business day.
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