Volakas White

Volakas White: Greece’s answer to Carrara

Volakas is quarried at roughly 800 metres on the slopes of Mount Falakro, near the town of Volakas in the Drama region of Northern Greece — a different mountain and a different country from Carrara, though the two are often compared. Around ten active quarries work the same deposit, which is why consistent supply is easier here than with some smaller Italian sources.

Two grades, and they look different

Volakas isn’t sold as a single uniform product. The Classic grade carries diagonal grey and brown veins with soft, cloud-like patches — more character, more movement. A purer white grade runs sparser and finer-veined, closer to a plain white ground. Both come off the same mountain; the difference is which block they’re cut from. If you’re matching an existing floor or trying to picture the final look, ask to see a slab from both grades side by side — they read quite differently under gallery light.

What it’s made of, and why that matters

Chemically it’s almost pure calcite — 97-99%, with trace dolomite and quartz. That composition is what gives marble its soft lustre when polished, but it’s also why it etches on contact with acid. Tamarind, lime, vinegar, most bathroom cleaners — all will dull a polished marble surface over time. This isn’t a defect specific to Volakas; it’s true of every calcite marble, including Carrara and Statuario. We mention it because it should shape where you use the stone, not whether you buy it.

Where it earns its keep in a Kerala home

• Flooring — the classic use, and where the grey veining reads best across a large area.
• Bathroom walls and vanities — full-height cladding in a shower makes the veining feel intentional rather than incidental.
• Feature walls and stair cladding, where a lighter marble lifts a room that natural daylight doesn’t reach directly.

We’d steer you away from a working kitchen worktop in Volakas — granite or quartzite handles the daily acid exposure of a Kerala kitchen (turmeric, tamarind, lime) far better than any marble will.

Living with it in a monsoon climate

Choose honed, not polished, for any floor — it’s less slippery underfoot when wet, which matters through months of monsoon humidity, and it disguises the light scratching marble floors inevitably develop. Seal on installation and again annually; clean with a pH-neutral cleaner only, never the acidic tile cleaners sold for bathroom use.