From Greece to Quanzhou, the wonderful journey of marble
The French-German public TV station ARTE reported on December 7, the original title: From Greece to China, the crazy journey of marble The rapid development of China is a window of economic globalization. The floors of high-end hotels, the facades of skyscrapers, and the bustling squares, the ancient and luxurious marble that can be seen everywhere has become a symbol of wealth accumulation. Today, China imports 60% of the world’s marble. From the quarry in the Peloponnese Peninsula in Greece to the apartment of a young couple in Qingdao, marble is experiencing an unprecedented and wonderful journey.
What better way to show one’s success than to build one’s own home with superior building materials? Xiao Zhang and Xiao Zhao from Qingdao dream of a new house decorated with Greek marble. It’s more of a show of success than a personal preference. “Did I choose this jazz white? The color is a little lighter, but it’s pretty,” Xiao Zhao said, pointing to the marble slabs on the windowsill and kitchen counter. On the other side of the “Marble Road”, fluent Chinese-speaking Internet celebrities “Greek Sisters” Marianne and Sophia were shooting a video in front of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia in Athens. “The temple originally had 107 marble columns…”
Zou Yong, a major client of the Didima quarry in Greece, was a hawker 20 years ago and is now one of the best foreign businessmen in Greece. More than 100 marble containers are sent from the local area to China every month. “Many Chinese people want to buy high-end marble nowadays,” said Zou. The local quarry hopes that he will introduce more Chinese customers.
Starting from the Greek port of Piraeus, the “marble gateway” of the Chinese in Europe, the marble arrived in Quanzhou after a long journey. Laurent, a French who has worked in China for more than 20 years, is the owner of a high-end stone enterprise. He is familiar with the hobby of Chinese enterprises and rich people to imitate European-style castles. He is using marble to tailor larger and more luxurious villas and even palaces for them. He said that Fujian Shuitou Town, which has more than 5,000 stone factories, is like a “world stone center”. “After the economic crisis in 2008, China became the world’s first stone market.”
Xiao Zhang and Xiao Zhaofei went to Santorini for a grand Greek wedding. The souvenirs they bought there were made by Quanzhou Stone Factory. Their honeymoon wedding highlights the desire of a powerful country and the dependence of a small country behind the marble (exotic) journey.