Besides rAjapUta, jaina influence in marble should be considered.
Ancient vigraha-s of jaina tIrthankara's were all in coarse stones and especially black. refer particularly to udayagiri cave temples around bhuvaneshwar, or in karNATaka for a sample. Then, with passage of time, when jains were left predominantly in the upper gujarAta and southern-western rAjasthAn - they started using what was most available in those regions - marble from narmadA.
All the jain temples in the west (and then erected elesewhere in India by these migrating Jains) display marble vigraha-s of digambara-s from then onwards. Now, in western India, temple artists and sculptors between jains and hindus were most probably common, as it evident from the similarity of their temple architectures. And therefore marble too moved. Spread of marble from west to the rest of India from western part, is thanks in large parts to merchants... jain koThArI-s and hindu mArwadi-s.... All the birlA temples in north would display white marble statues - even hanumAn! (except for birla temples in south - where venkaTesh is always in black).
Now, even this (merchants bringling marble vigraha-s) would be a rather recent phenomenon. One such temple erected in heart of bihar by a western gold merchant, a mehatA, in 12-13th century does enshrine pitch dark stone for shivalinga as well as statues of kumAra, gaurI, rAma, lakshmaNa etc. (I referred to this temple complex of mAlInagara in Temples thread) So marble is even more recent than that?
Ancient vigraha-s of jaina tIrthankara's were all in coarse stones and especially black. refer particularly to udayagiri cave temples around bhuvaneshwar, or in karNATaka for a sample. Then, with passage of time, when jains were left predominantly in the upper gujarAta and southern-western rAjasthAn - they started using what was most available in those regions - marble from narmadA.
All the jain temples in the west (and then erected elesewhere in India by these migrating Jains) display marble vigraha-s of digambara-s from then onwards. Now, in western India, temple artists and sculptors between jains and hindus were most probably common, as it evident from the similarity of their temple architectures. And therefore marble too moved. Spread of marble from west to the rest of India from western part, is thanks in large parts to merchants... jain koThArI-s and hindu mArwadi-s.... All the birlA temples in north would display white marble statues - even hanumAn! (except for birla temples in south - where venkaTesh is always in black).
Now, even this (merchants bringling marble vigraha-s) would be a rather recent phenomenon. One such temple erected in heart of bihar by a western gold merchant, a mehatA, in 12-13th century does enshrine pitch dark stone for shivalinga as well as statues of kumAra, gaurI, rAma, lakshmaNa etc. (I referred to this temple complex of mAlInagara in Temples thread) So marble is even more recent than that?