Marble sculptures are marked with a unique place in the world art, as the art of stone sculpting is very much common in every state of India. A large percentage of marble sculpture is employed for a sacred purpose in India, in preparing various statues, idols of Gods & Goddesses & carvings in architecture. The entire artwork of marble sculptures bears the excellent style and patterns of finest craftsmanship that are achieved with quality. They provide an eloquent glimpse of strikingly attractive, versatile sizing of beautiful artistic designs and craftsmanship. One of the features of marble is that the finest marbles used for sculpture does not contain stains. But some of natural stains are seen in the sculpture, which the sculptor skillfully incorporates into the sculpture.

From the records of history, the art of marble stone sculpture reached at the peak during the Moghul rule. In Mughal dynasty, Shah Jahan`s reign is marked for monumental architectural achievements. He initiated the most important architectural change in the form of the use of marble in preparation of monuments or tombs instead of sandstone. Thus, the use of marble in building temples & palaces is very common in Rajasthan State. He replaced the Red Fort structure made up with red stone with marble buildings such as the Diwan-i-Am, the Diwan-i-Khas and the Moti Masjid. He also built the black marble pavilion at the Shalimar Gardens in Srinagar and a white marble palace in Ajmer. Apart from the marble carvings one should also admire the intricacy of marble inlay work on various architectural marvels constructed by Moghuls like Taj Mahal or buildings within Red Fort of Agra.

The very famous Taj Mahal is entirely made up with a white marble and its pure white walls with attractive & delicate designs are decorated with stone inlay work. Such work is also found on the tombs or palaces of the Mughals; the tomb `itmad-ud-daulah`, which is a tomb of the father of Nur Jahan, built by Nur Jahan in between 1622 and 1628 using the white marble.

Indians knew the mosaic inlay work & it was prevalent in India even before the Moghuls came. This can be seen in the temples in India, where there are the complete or partly carved patterns of marble on ceilings and walls. Sometimes the frames of the doors & windows are carved in marble with flowers or other intricate designs in temples. Even the Dilwara Jain temples in Mount Abu, Rajasthan is carved in marble. Instead of any artistic designs, here the stress is given on enshrine various Jain `Tirthankaras`. It is constructed out of a white marble from Arasoori Hill; the temples are marked as an outstanding example of Jain temple architecture.

There are total five shrines in these temples, from which four are architecturally significant. All shrines are built with the help of white marble stones. Around the large courtyard of temples, numerous small shrines are seen. Every small shrine is employing a beautiful image of the tirthankaras with a series of elegantly carved pillars, giving rich look from the entrance to the courtyard. It is believed that this artwork had constructed during 11th and 13th centuries AD. In later period, many Hindu temples were carved with marble. The interiors of all these temples are covered with delicate design or religious symbols. Even Sanchi is famous for the Grand Stupa built by king Ashoka and there are total four gateways that were carved intricately in marble. The two richly carved pillars, rise to be crowned by carved lions, elephants and dwarfs, from these is the famous Ashoka lions are now, the official seal of India.