Chimakurthy Granite Sculpture Workshops

Chimakurthy Granite Sculpture Workshops are a cluster of quarries, cutting, polishing and carving units in Chimakurthy town, Prakasam district, Andhra Pradesh. The area is internationally known for Black Galaxy granite, a black stone with golden flecks. Workshops produce slabs, monuments, statues and temple sculptures using traditional carving and modern machinery. Visitors can observe artisans shaping granite and view finished sculptures, reflecting the region's stone industry heritage.

Visitors can expect an industrial and craft setting with open yards, sheds and workshops filled with granite blocks, slabs, statues and monuments in various stages of completion. Artisans can be seen cutting, polishing and hand-carving stone using both manual tools and machinery. The surroundings include quarry areas, stockyards and display areas for finished sculptures such as deities, pillars and memorial stones. The experience is observational and educational, focused on understanding granite processing and sculpture making.

Chimakurthy gained prominence after the discovery and commercial quarrying of Black Galaxy granite, a rare black granite with bronze-gold flecks, from the late 1980s and 1990s onwards. The stone's international demand led to development of numerous quarries and processing units, establishing Chimakurthy as a major granite hub in South India and contributing significantly to the region's industrial growth.

The workshops represent the contemporary stone-craft culture of Prakasam district, where traditional sculpture skills are applied to granite for temple idols, monuments and decorative items. The industry supports a large artisan and labour community and showcases Andhra Pradesh's heritage of stone working adapted to modern commercial and religious sculpture production.