The only thing that will scratch granite is more granite or stone. It's harder than your knives or pots and pans. Perhaps it's just a metal mark left by one of the pots or pans like cast iron sinks can get. Or, do you use any type of stone trivet or cutting board that might have had a felt pad come off? While most fabricators can resin a scratch, most will charge you to do so as the only way that you can have a scratch is "abuse", not normal use.

Thanks- this is leading me to believe it was here all along and we just noticed it since nothing has been on the bar top but plastic, wood and my Mac computer. Just not making any sense on how it got there and the last thing I want is more resin (they fixed a few spots and it is really noticeable) so I guess we are living with it.

I had a scratch appear on my absolute black polished granite. I was told that knives do scratch granite, but maybe they just scratch the polish? I don't know, but I definitely had a scratch. I always used cutting boards after. And I don't know if it was from a knife - it could have been from a heavy pot being dragged across it with something gritty underneath. But whatever the cause, it was a scratch.

If there's a bit of sand or grit under an object that you drag across the surface, then yes, that sand can scratch your granite. Sand is quartz. So is glass, basically. A sharp piece of glass can scratch granite. But steel can't. Even carbon steel can't scratch granite as it isn't hard enough. Marble is another story. It's a relatively soft stone, and can be carved with iron or steel tools, which is why it was used for statuary work.

To be able to scratch a surface, the scratcher has to be as hard as or harder than the scratchee. Granite is generally a 6-7 on the Mohs scale of hardness, depending on it's actual mineral makeup. Marble is 2.5 to 5. Knives are generally 5.5.

Mohs Scale

1 Talc Talcum Powder
2 Gypsum Used in plaster of paris, deposited in lake and sea water
3 Calcite Limestone and most shells contain calcite
4 Fluorite Fluorine in Fluorite prevents tooth decay
5 Apatite Infrequently used as a gemstone
6 Orthoclase Common constituent of most granites
7 Quartz Regularly found in passage tomb cemeteries in Europe
8 Topaz The November birthstone. Can be found in the Ural mountains.
9 Corundum Sapphire and Ruby are varieties of corundum. Twice as hard as Topaz. Sometimes used as an abrasive.
10 Diamond Used in Jewellery and cutting tools. Four times as hard as Corundum.

Just out of curiosity, can some of the granite scratches actually be scratches in the resin applied to some granites?

Cast iron can scratch granite. I have both! The iron may wear away faster than the granite because it is not as hard but it will still leave a scratch if it is heavy enough. It could also be as live wire says - maybe there is some grit that gets under there but I doubt I have diamond dust swirling around the house.

Many of the stones labeled as 'granite' are anything but.

The inclusions can also be softer than actual granite.

I purchased a hand made piece of pottery at a flea market and used it as a fruit bowl.

It left all kinds of scratches on my granite before I realized what was happening. I'm the only one that really notices them and only in certain light, but definitely scratched. Tropic Brown.

Thanks everyone- it's really not that noticeable but driving my DH crazy- of course it is on the bar area so it's really in his eye view:( can I buff it out with something? It's not that deep?

Wondering if you can call your fabricator and he can "buff" it out.

That's what I was hoping- I would pay him to do it?

Go to you tube and type in Scratch Genie. It is a diamond paste which is easy to use. It worked well on my scratched granite. It is sold through ebay under diamond paste scratch remover. Good luck!

some counter makers ad a clear coat,MOstly MArble soft stones though this is easy to see as it looks wet-vasline coverd on top so yes this will scratch, Granite as it self is rather difficult to scratch. I did alot of granite fabrication. I did hand bull nosing.... So yes it is east to remove scratches I highly suggest a Fabric wheel on a drill or similar, and there is Stone sticks It is like a rough Crayon That you apply to the Wheel at a medium speed. They come in different colors- hardness buffing levels, Much of this can be found at Home-Lowes. I use different degrees of wet sand paper to cut out the scratch this take the most time, then Polish it to a nice shine with the polish wheel at high speed. Hope this helps I suggest a stone sealer after as Oil will ruin stones appearance. Good Luck!