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Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of
building A building or edifice is an enclosed Structure#Load-bearing, structure with a roof, walls and window, windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, a ...
s, structures, and
sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
using
stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
as the primary material. Stonemasonry is the craft of shaping and arranging stones, often together with mortar and even the ancient
lime mortar Lime mortar or torching is a masonry mortar (masonry), mortar composed of lime (material), lime and an construction aggregate, aggregate such as sand, mixed with water. It is one of the oldest known types of mortar, used in ancient Rome and anci ...
, to wall or cover formed structures. The basic tools, methods and skills of the banker mason have existed as a trade for thousands of years. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters,
temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...
s,
monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...
s, artifacts,
fortification A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...
s,
road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...
s,
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
s, and entire
cities A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
were built of stone. Famous works of stonemasonry include
Göbekli Tepe Göbekli Tepe (, ; Kurdish: or , 'Wish Hill') is a Neolithic archaeological site in Upper Mesopotamia (''al-Jazira'') in modern-day Turkey. The settlement was inhabited from around to at least , during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic. It is famou ...
, the
Egyptian pyramids The Egyptian pyramids are ancient masonry structures located in Egypt. Most were built as tombs for the pharaohs and their consorts during the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old and Middle Kingdom of Egypt, Middle Kingdom periods. At least 138 identi ...
, the
Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal ( ; ; ) is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal Empire, Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his belo ...
,
Cusco Cusco or Cuzco (; or , ) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the eponymous Cusco Province, province and Cusco Region, department. The city was the cap ...
's Incan Wall, Taqwesan,
Easter Island Easter Island (, ; , ) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is renowned for its nearly 1,000 extant monumental statues, ...
's statues,
Angkor Wat Angkor Wat (; , "City/Capital of Wat, Temples") is a Buddhism and Hinduism, Hindu-Buddhist temple complex in Cambodia. Located on a site measuring within the ancient Khmer Empire, Khmer capital city of Angkor, it was originally constructed ...
,
Borobudur Borobudur, also transcribed Barabudur (, ), is a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple in Magelang Regency, near the city of Magelang and the town of Muntilan, in Central Java, Indonesia. Constructed of gray andesite-like stone, the temple consi ...
,
Tihuanaco Tiwanaku ( or ) is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia, near Lake Titicaca, about 70 kilometers from La Paz, and it is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilometers and in ...
,
Tenochtitlan , also known as Mexico-Tenochtitlan, was a large Mexican in what is now the historic center of Mexico City. The exact date of the founding of the city is unclear, but the date 13 March 1325 was chosen in 1925 to celebrate the 600th annivers ...
,
Persepolis Persepolis (; ; ) was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (). It is situated in the plains of Marvdasht, encircled by the southern Zagros mountains, Fars province of Iran. It is one of the key Iranian cultural heritage sites and ...
, the
Parthenon The Parthenon (; ; ) is a former Ancient Greek temple, temple on the Acropolis of Athens, Athenian Acropolis, Greece, that was dedicated to the Greek gods, goddess Athena. Its decorative sculptures are considered some of the high points of c ...
,
Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...
, the
Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against vario ...
, the
Mesoamerican pyramids Mesoamerican pyramids form a prominent part of ancient Mesoamerican architecture. Although similar in some ways to Egyptian pyramids, these New World structures have flat tops (many with temples on the top) and stairs ascending their faces, more ...
,
Chartres Cathedral Chartres Cathedral (, lit. Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres) is a Catholic cathedral in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the List of bishops of Chartres, Bishop of Chartres. Dedicated in honour of the Virgin Mary ( ...
, and the Stari Most. While stone was important traditionally, it fell out of use in the modern era, in favor of brick and steel-reinforced concrete. This is despite the advantages of stone over concrete. Those advantages include: * Many types of stone are stronger than concrete in compression. * Stone uses much less energy to produce, and hence its production emits less carbon dioxide than either brick or concrete. * Stone is widely considered aesthetically pleasing, while concrete is often painted or clad. Modern stonemasonry is in the process of reinventing itself for automation, modern load-bearing stone construction, innovative reinforcement techniques, and integration with other sustainable materials, like
engineered wood Engineered wood, also called mass timber, composite wood, man-made wood, or manufactured board, includes a range of derivative wood products which are manufactured by binding or fixing the strands, particles, fibres, veneers, or boards of wood, ...
.


Stonemasonry disciplines

* A quarryman splits or cuts rock in the quarry, and extracts the resulting blocks of stone. The cut or split pieces are collected and transported away from the extraction surface for further refinement. * A sawyer stonemason cuts these stone blocks into
dimension stone Dimension stone is natural stone or Rock (geology), rock that has been selected and finished (e.g., trimmed, cut, drilled or ground) to specific sizes or shapes. Color, Texture (geology), texture and pattern, and surface finish of the stone are ...
, to required size with saws. The resulting block, if ordered for a specific component, is known as sawn six sides (SSS). A sawyer mason is similar to a banker mason (see below) in that they work with rough pieces of stone and shape them according to certain standards. The main difference between a sawyer mason and a banker mason is the size of the stone they work with. A sawyer mason typically works with much larger pieces and uses diamond-coated tools. Sawyer masons may work in quarries or be found in tile or flooring stores, possessing a range of specific skills, such as examining grain patterns to determine cleavage, creating smaller stones from larger pieces, and carving precise outlines and drilling holes using various tools like chisels. * A banker mason, sometimes referred to as a bank mason, is workshop-based, and specializes in working the stones into the shapes required by a building's design, this set out on templets and a bed mould. A banker mason uses various hand and power tools to cut, carve, and shape stone. They can produce anything from stones with simple
chamfer A chamfer ( ) is a transitional edge between two faces of an object. Sometimes defined as a form of bevel, it is often created at a 45° angle between two adjoining right-angled faces. Chamfers are frequently used in machining, carpentry, fur ...
s to
tracery Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support th ...
windows, detailed mouldings and the more classical architectural building masonry. When working a stone from a sawn block, the mason ensures that the stone is bedded in the right way, so the finished work sits in the building in the same orientation as it was formed on the ground. Occasionally though some stones need to be oriented correctly for the application; this includes voussoirs, jambs, copings, and cornices. The stone's size and shape are usually predetermined by builders or other parties involved in a project, and the banker mason works according to a brief or a set of designs provided for that project. Once the stone has been crafted to the required specifications, it is transported to the construction site or another location for use in a building or other structure. * A fixer mason specializes in the fixing of stones onto buildings, using lifting tackle, and traditional lime mortars and grouts. Sometimes modern cements, mastics, and epoxy resins are used, usually on specialist applications such as stone cladding. Metal fixings, from simple dowels and cramps to specialized single application fixings, are also used. The precise tolerances necessarily make this a highly skilled job. A fixer mason is responsible for traveling to a job site to fit and lay pre-prepared stone or cladding for buildings. They might do this with grouts, mortars, and lifting tackle. They might also use things like single application specialized fixings, simple cramps, and dowels as well as stone cladding with things like epoxy resins, mastics, and modern cements. * A memorial mason or monumental mason carves gravestones and inscriptions. * A carver mason crosses the line from craft to art. They use their artistic ability to carve stone into foliage, figures, animals or abstract designs. Carver masons are the artists of stonemasonry, responsible for creating designs and/or patterns from stone, as well as on stones. This work can include stone sculptures of figures or animals, or other projects of a similar nature. Throughout history, carver masons have been renowned for their exceptional skills in crafting beautiful pieces from stone.


Classical stonemasonry techniques

Stone has been used in construction for thousands of years, in many contexts. Listed below are six types of classical stonemasonry techniques, some of which still see widespread use. * Ashlar masonry. Stone masonry using dressed (cut) stones is known as
ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...
masonry. * Trabeated systems. One of the oldest forms of stone construction uses a
lintel A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented/structural item. In the case ...
(beam) laid across stone posts or columns. This method predates
Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...
, and refined versions were used by the Egyptians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans. *
Arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...
masonry. Also called " arcuated systems" in contrast with trabeated systems, which are two ancient methods for creating a void below a stone span (either a lintel or an arch). Note that the Wikipedia page on stone arches is about stone-arch bridges exclusively, and the arch page is about all arches, including non-stone. *
Rubble masonry Rubble masonry or rubble stone is rough, uneven building stone not laid in regular courses. It may fill the core of a wall which is faced with unit masonry such as brick or ashlar. Some medieval cathedral walls have outer shells of ashlar wi ...
. Use of rubble in masonry: antonymous to ashlar masonry. Can be infill in an ashlar wall, used in cyclopean concrete, and other contexts. The term is antonymous to "ashlar". *
Dry stone Dry stone, sometimes called drystack or, in Scotland, drystane, is a building method by which structures are constructed from stones without any mortar to bind them together. A certain amount of binding is obtained through the use of carefully ...
. Stone walls built without mortar, using the shape of the stones, compression, and friction for stability. This technique encompasses cyclopean masonry and other mortar-less methods, but is conventionally used to describe agricultural walls used to mark boundaries, contain livestock, and retain soil. *
Cyclopean masonry Cyclopean masonry is a type of stonework found in Mycenaean architecture, built with massive limestone boulders, roughly fitted together with minimal clearance between adjacent stones and with clay mortar or no use of mortar. The boulders typic ...
. Drywall construction using massive boulders that may have been shaped to fit together.
Polygonal masonry In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure made up of line segments connected to form a closed polygonal chain. The segments of a closed polygonal chain are called its '' edges'' or ''sides''. The points where two edges meet are the polygon ...
is a subtype of cyclopean masonry where the boulders are shaped into polygonal profiles.


Modern stonemasonry systems

In the modern era, stone has been largely relegated to being a cosmetic element of buildings, often used as decorative cladding on steel-reinforced concrete. This is despite its wide historical use in large compressive structures: 50-m bridges and colosseums in Roman times, ~65-m tall cathedrals since the
middle ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
, and 12-story apartment buildings built in the 1690s.


Modern stonemasonry techniques

*
Stone veneer Stone veneer is a thin layer of any stone used as decorative facing material that is not meant to be load bearing. Stone cladding is a stone veneer, or simulated stone, applied to a building or other structure made of a material other than stone. ...
is used as a protective and decorative covering for interior or exterior walls and surfaces. The veneer is typically 1 in (25.4 mm) thick and must weigh less than 15 lb per square foot (73 kg m−2) so that no additional structural supports are required. The structural wall is put up first, and thin, flat stones are mortared onto the face of the wall. Metal tabs in the structural wall are mortared between the stones to tie everything together, to prevent the stonework from separating from the wall. * Massive precut stone. Also known as " prefabricated stone", " massive stone", "pre-sized stone", or "pré-taille" stone. * Post-
tensioned stone Tensioned stone is a high-performance composite construction material: stone held in compression with tension elements. The tension elements can be connected to the outside of the stone, but more typically Prestressed concrete#Post-tensioned conc ...
. A high-performance composite construction material consisting of stone held in compression with tension elements. The tension elements can be connected to the outside of the stone, but more typically uses
tendons A tendon or sinew is a tough band of dense fibrous connective tissue that connects muscle to bone. It sends the mechanical forces of muscle contraction to the skeletal system, while withstanding tension. Tendons, like ligaments, are made of ...
threaded internally through a duct formed from aligned drilled holes. * Pre-
tensioned stone Tensioned stone is a high-performance composite construction material: stone held in compression with tension elements. The tension elements can be connected to the outside of the stone, but more typically Prestressed concrete#Post-tensioned conc ...
. Using an epoxy shear connector, early experiments have shown that it is possible to pre-tension stone, maintaining the tendon under tension while the liquid epoxy is injected and allowed to set. * Digital stereotomy. Using CAD and computer models of load, modern designers are able to cut complex vaults, arches, and other arrangements of precisely cut ashlars. Antecedents to this discipline include curved vaults, and also flat vaults that use a concentric flat arch vault and the Abeille flat vault. Using digital design and machining, such compression structures can be shapes into complex compressive structures. Leaders in this area include Giuseppe Fallacara and Philippe Block. * Trabeated stone exoskeleton. In the modern era, post-and-lintel construction was adapted use as a stone exoskeleton in the design of 15 Clerkenwell Close. The stone exoskeleton method is a variant of the massive precut stone method: the ends of the posts and lintels are precisely precut offsite prior to assembly by crane. At least two more trabeated stone exoskeleton high-rise buildings are underway, one in London, and another in Bristol. * Stone bricks. Small stone ashlars that are cut by the quarry to brick sizing to allow their use in standardized brick-laying workflows. Cost is similar to clay composite bricks, but with greatly reduced carbon emissions. As stone does not change size like fired clay bricks, brick-sized stone ashlars do not require expansion joints. * Cyclopean concrete. This method uses a combination of
cyclopean masonry Cyclopean masonry is a type of stonework found in Mycenaean architecture, built with massive limestone boulders, roughly fitted together with minimal clearance between adjacent stones and with clay mortar or no use of mortar. The boulders typic ...
and
rubble masonry Rubble masonry or rubble stone is rough, uneven building stone not laid in regular courses. It may fill the core of a wall which is faced with unit masonry such as brick or ashlar. Some medieval cathedral walls have outer shells of ashlar wi ...
: boulders and or rubble are placed in a form (or in a ditch), and concrete is poured on top to bind the stones together before removing the form. Variations of this include
Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright Sr. (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed List of Frank Lloyd Wright works, more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key ...
's 'desert masonry' and Institut Balear de l'Habitatge's cyclopean concrete blocks, which are cast in a large slab and precisely sawn for use as prefabricated masonry in the massive precut stone system. *
Slipform stonemasonry Slipform stonemasonry is a method for making a reinforced concrete wall with stone facing in which stones and mortar are built up in courses within reusable slipforms. It is a cross between traditional mortared stone wall and a veneered stone wall ...
is a variation of Cyclopean concrete stone-wall construction that uses formwork to contain the rocks and mortar while keeping the walls straight. Short forms, up to two feet tall, are placed on both sides of the wall to serve as a guide for the stonework. Stones are placed inside the forms with the good faces against the formwork. Concrete is poured behind the rocks. Rebar is added for strength, to make a wall that is approximately half reinforced concrete and half stonework. The wall can be faced with stone on one side or both sides. * Formwork stone. "Pierre banchée" in French. Uses stone tiles or ashlars as shuttering for pouring concrete. These are left in place after the concrete sets. This is the inverse procedure to stone cladding, where the stone tiles are attached to the concrete after the temporary shuttering has been removed. Developed by
Fernand Pouillon Fernand Pouillon (14 May 1912 – 24 July 1986) was a French architect, urban planner, building contractor and writer. Pouillon was one of the most active and influential post-World War II architects and builders in France. He is remembered for ...
to accelerate construction. Formwork stone is distinct from cyclopean concrete in that the former uses rectilinear tiles, while the latter uses boulders and/or
cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on Cobble (geology), cobble-sized stones, and is used for Road surface, pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Sett (paving), Setts, also called ''Belgian blocks'', are often referred to as " ...
.


Massive precut stone

Massive precut stone is also known as "prefabricated", or "pre-sized" stone is a modern method of building with load-bearing stone. Precut stone is a DFMA construction method that uses large machine-cut stone blocks with precisely defined dimensions to rapidly assemble buildings in which stone is used as a major or the primary load-bearing material. Massive precut stone construction was originally developed by
Fernand Pouillon Fernand Pouillon (14 May 1912 – 24 July 1986) was a French architect, urban planner, building contractor and writer. Pouillon was one of the most active and influential post-World War II architects and builders in France. He is remembered for ...
in the postwar period. He referred to the method as "pierre de taille" or "pré-taille" stone. It became possible through innovations by Pouillon and Paul Marcerou, a masonry engineer at a quarry in Fontvieille, to adapt high-precision saws from the timber industry to quarrying and stone sawing. The key technique of massive precut (MP) stone is to cut stone ashlars to precise dimensions that match the architect's plan such that the stones can be dropped into place by crane for rapid construction. The blocks may be numbered so that the masons can follow the plan procedurally. The use of massive blocks reduces costs by minimizing sawing and fixer-masonry costs. The use of a crane reduces labor, accelerates construction, and allows the masons to precisely and quickly position the blocks.


Design features of massive precut stone

MP stone is defined by four design attributes. * Load-bearing stone. This distinguishes it from cosmetic precut stone, which is used for cladding decoration. Historically, load-bearing stone is the most durable construction method. * Massive block sizes. The heuristic definition of 'massive stone' is a block that is too heavy to be lifted by hand. Using massive dimensions has three critical benefits: (1) minimizing cuts, which lowers cost and shortens production time, (2) increasing the thermal mass of walls for temperature regulation in the building, and (3) making use of crane construction, thereby lowering manual labor, shortening assembly time, reducing mortar, labor, and cost. * Precise offsite dimension cuts. Precutting can be done at the quarry, or at a masonry workshop by sawyer and banker masons. The precision amounts to a form of prefabrication, such that the masons do not have to make adjustments onsite, and construction is an assembly process. Precise ashlar interfaces also reduce the amount of mortar required.


Types of massive precut stone construction

* Massive precut ashlars. Blocks cut precisely on four to six sides, used to assemble walls, lintels over windows and doors, and in flat arches. * End-shaped massive precut posts and lintels. Quarry-finished blocks with precisely shaped ends for assembly into post-and-lintel frameworks. * Massive cyclopean concrete blocks. Developed by IBAVI in Mallorca, rough stones are placed in a mold and saturated with concrete. The concrete is sawn into massive ashlars for crane assembly. Enables reuse of rough plum stones from traditional stone masonry.


Benefits of massive precut stone construction

MP stone construction has advantages over conventional masonry and concrete construction. * Build speed. The use of precisely cut and numbered ashlars, combined with crane-assisted assembly, significantly reduces construction time compared to traditional stone-masonry techniques. Compared to concrete construction, MP stone is faster as there is no setting wait time. * Cost reduction. Compared to brick masonry or smaller ashlars, using larger stone blocks and thereby minimizing sawing and fixer-masonry costs, the overall expense of constructing a building can be reduced. * Labor efficiency. The use of cranes and a well-organized construction plan reduces the labor required, lowering costs and reducing the wait time for skilled mason availability. * Design efficiency. The precision of machine-cut ashlars allows for more modularity in design, enabling architects to create building designs quickly. * Durability. Buildings constructed using massive precut stone maintain the inherent durability and longevity of stone construction, offering long-lasting and low-maintenance structures. At least one study of a modern 20-storey unreinforced MP-stone tower has suggested this method has good seismic resilience: "With regard to the current Algerian seismic design regulation, the results obtained in terms of time period, frequency, storey drifts and displacements showed that the… (Diar Es Saada massive precut stone)… tower can be considered as an earthquake-resistant building fulfilling the required structural safety conditions." * Aesthetics. Compared to concrete and other materials, massive precut stone construction yields visually striking and distinctive buildings that showcase the natural beauty of stone. * Environmental benefits. The use of a material with lower embedded carbon contributes to a more sustainable building process, minimizing the environmental impact. Lower carbon emissions: load-bearing stone construction emits around one-tenth the carbon as a comparable concrete building. As 80% of energy is non-grid fossil fuel, and construction is responsible for 8% of carbon emissions, the replacement of coal-burning concrete production with lower-energy dimension-stone production could have a substantial impact on net-zero goals. * Reusability. When a building has reached the end of its usefulness, massive rectilinear ashlars are easily reused in new construction. * Thermal performance. As with traditional stone construction, massive precut stone buildings benefit from excellent thermal mass, helping to regulate indoor temperatures and reduce energy consumption for heating and cooling.


History of massive precut stone

Fernand Pouillon Fernand Pouillon (14 May 1912 – 24 July 1986) was a French architect, urban planner, building contractor and writer. Pouillon was one of the most active and influential post-World War II architects and builders in France. He is remembered for ...
pioneered the use of massive precut stone in modern architecture. During the post-war period, his innovative approach to stone construction led to the development of numerous noteworthy projects, with a particular focus on housing. Throughout his long career, Pouillon played a crucial role in the development and popularization of massive precut stone construction techniques. His pioneering work laid the foundation for subsequent architects to build upon and innovate, leading to the resurgence and expansion of this construction method in the 2020s, with the rise of interest in low-carbon durable construction.


Tensioned stone

Post-tensioned stone (PT stone) is a high-performance composite construction material: stone held in compression with tension elements. The tension elements can be connected to the outside of the stone, but more typically uses
tendons A tendon or sinew is a tough band of dense fibrous connective tissue that connects muscle to bone. It sends the mechanical forces of muscle contraction to the skeletal system, while withstanding tension. Tendons, like ligaments, are made of ...
threaded internally through a duct formed from aligned drilled holes. Post-tensioned stone may consist of a single piece, but drill limitations and other considerations mean it is typically an assembly of multiple components with mortar between pieces. PT stone has been used in both vertical columns (posts), and in horizontal beams (lintels). It has also been used in more unusual engineering applications: arch stabilization, flexible foot bridges, and cantilevered sculptures. Tensioned stone has a close affiliation with massive precut stone as two central techniques of modern stonemasonry.


Rationale

"Post-tensioned stone increases the failure load of stone in bending, but also the stiffness of a structure by reducing joint cracking. This method of construction is widely used for concrete structures, but the advantages of using similar techniques with stone are only just being realised". Stone has great compressive strength, so is ideal in compressive structures like stone arches. However, it has relatively weak flexural strength (compared to steel or wood), so in isolation cannot be safely used in wide spans under tension. For concrete, this problem has been long solved: in addition to conventional tensile reinforcement, engineers developed
prestressed concrete Prestressed concrete is a form of concrete used in construction. It is substantially prestressed (Compression (physics), compressed) during production, in a manner that strengthens it against tensile forces which will exist when in service. Post-t ...
methods starting around 1888. Such tension-reinforced concrete applications combine compressive strength with pre-stressed tensile compression for combined strength much greater than either of the individual components, and have been in wide use for decades. As for concrete, post-tensioning maintains stone in compression, thereby increasing its strength. Post-tensioning is achieved steel tendons either threaded through ducts within the stone elements or along their surface. Once the stone components are in place, the tendons are tensioned using hydraulic jacks, and the force is transferred to the stone through anchorages located at the ends of the tendons. The tensioning process imparts a compressive force to the stone, which improves its capacity to resist tensile stresses that could otherwise cause cracking or failure.


= Energy use and carbon emissions

= Stone is "natural precast concrete", so only needs to be cut (and strength tested) and post-tensioned prior to use in construction. Compared to concrete and steel, post-tensioned stone production has dramatically lower energy costs, with concomitant lower carbon emissions.


History of stonemasonry

Stonemasonry is one of the earliest trades in
civilization A civilization (also spelled civilisation in British English) is any complex society characterized by the development of state (polity), the state, social stratification, urban area, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyon ...
's history. During the time of the
Neolithic Revolution The Neolithic Revolution, also known as the First Agricultural Revolution, was the wide-scale transition of many human cultures during the Neolithic period in Afro-Eurasia from a lifestyle of hunter-gatherer, hunting and gathering to one of a ...
and
domestication Domestication is a multi-generational Mutualism (biology), mutualistic relationship in which an animal species, such as humans or leafcutter ants, takes over control and care of another species, such as sheep or fungi, to obtain from them a st ...
of non-human animals, people learned how to use fire to create
quicklime Calcium oxide (formula: Ca O), commonly known as quicklime or burnt lime, is a widely used chemical compound. It is a white, caustic, alkaline, crystalline solid at room temperature. The broadly used term '' lime'' connotes calcium-containin ...
,
plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...
s, and mortars. They used these to fashion homes for themselves with mud, straw or stone, and masonry was born. The Ancients heavily relied on the stonemason to build the most impressive and long-lasting monuments to their civilizations. The
Egyptians Egyptians (, ; , ; ) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian identity is closely tied to Geography of Egypt, geography. The population is concentrated in the Nile Valley, a small strip of cultivable land stretchi ...
built their
pyramids A pyramid () is a Nonbuilding structure, structure whose visible surfaces are triangular in broad outline and converge toward the top, making the appearance roughly a Pyramid (geometry), pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid ca ...
, the civilizations of Central America had their step pyramids, the
Persians Persians ( ), or the Persian people (), are an Iranian ethnic group from West Asia that came from an earlier group called the Proto-Iranians, which likely split from the Indo-Iranians in 1800 BCE from either Afghanistan or Central Asia. They ...
their palaces, the
Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...
their temples, and the Romans their public works and wonders (See
Roman Architecture Ancient Roman architecture adopted the external language of classical ancient Greek architecture for the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was different from Greek buildings, becoming a new architectural style. The two styles are often con ...
). People of the
Indus Valley Civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation, was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300  BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form from 2600 BCE ...
, such as at
Dholavira Dholavira () is an archaeological site at Khadirbet in Bhachau Taluka of Kutch District, in the state of Gujarat in western India, which has taken its name from a modern-day village south of it. This village is from Radhanpur. Also known loc ...
made entire cities characterized by stone architecture. Among the famous ancient stonemasons is
Sophroniscus Sophroniscus (Greek: Σωφρονίσκος, ''Sophroniskos''), husband of Phaenarete, was the father of the philosopher Socrates. Occupation Little is known about Sophroniscus and his relationship with his son Socrates. According to tradition, ...
, the father of
Socrates Socrates (; ; – 399 BC) was a Ancient Greek philosophy, Greek philosopher from Classical Athens, Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and as among the first moral philosophers of the Ethics, ethical tradition ...
, who was a stone-cutter. Castle building was an entire industry for the medieval stonemasons. When the
Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...
fell, building in dressed stone decreased in much of
Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
, and there was a resulting increase in timber-based construction. Stonework experienced a resurgence in the 9th and 10th centuries in Europe, and by the 12th-century religious fervour resulted in the construction of thousands of impressive churches and cathedrals in stone across Western Europe. Medieval stonemasons' skills were in high demand, and members of the
guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular territory. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradespeople belonging to a professional association. They so ...
, gave rise to three classes of stonemasons:
apprentice Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in ...
s,
journeymen A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that field as a fully qualified employee ...
, and master masons. Apprentices were indentured to their masters as the price for their training, journeymen were qualified craftsmen who were paid by the day, and master masons were considered freemen who could travel as they wished to work on the projects of the
patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...
s and could operate as self-employed craftsmen and train apprentices. During the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
, the stonemason's guild admitted members who were not stonemasons, and eventually evolved into the Society of
Freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...
; fraternal groups which observe the traditional culture of stonemasons but are not typically involved in modern construction projects. A medieval stonemason would often carve a personal symbol onto their block to differentiate their work from that of other stonemasons. This also provided a simple "quality assurance" system. The Renaissance saw stonemasonry return to the prominence and sophistication of the Classical age. The rise of the humanist philosophy gave people the ambition to create marvelous works of art. The centre stage for the Renaissance would prove to be Italy, where
Italian city-states The Italian city-states were numerous political and independent territorial entities that existed in the Italian Peninsula from antiquity to the formation of the Kingdom of Italy in the late 19th century. The ancient Italian city-states were E ...
such as
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
erected great structures, including the
Florence Cathedral Florence Cathedral (), formally the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flower ( ), is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Florence in Florence, Italy. Commenced in 1296 in the Gothic style to a design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed b ...
, the Fountain of Neptune, Florence, Fountain of Neptune, and the Laurentian Library, which was planned and built by Michelangelo Buonarroti, a famous sculptor of the Renaissance. When Europeans settled the Americas, they brought the stonemasonry techniques of their respective homelands with them. Settlers used what materials were available, and in some areas, stone was the material of choice. In the first waves, building mimicked that of Europe, to eventually be replaced by unique architecture later on. In the 20th century, stonemasonry saw its most radical changes in the way the work is accomplished. Prior to the first half of the century, most heavy work was executed by Draft horse, draft animals or human muscle power. With the arrival of the internal combustion engine, many of these hard aspects of the trade have been made simpler and easier. Cranes and Forklift truck, forklifts have made moving and laying heavy stones relatively easy for the stonemasons. Motor powered mortar mixers have saved much in time and energy as well. Pneumatics, Compressed-air powered tools have made working of stone less time-intensive. Petrol and electric-powered Diamond tool, abrasive saws can cut through stone much faster and with more precision than chiseling alone. Cemented carbide-tipped chisels can stand up to much more abuse than the steel and iron chisels made by blacksmiths of old.


Tools

Stonemasons use a wide variety of tools to handle and shape stone blocks (
ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...
) and slabs into finished articles. The basic tools for shaping the stone are a mallet, chisels, and a metal Straightedge, straight edge. With these one can make a flat surface – the basis of all stonemasonry. Chisels come in a variety of sizes and shapes, dependent upon the function for which they are being used and have many different names depending on locality. There are different chisels for different materials and sizes of material being worked, for removing large amounts of material and for putting a fine finish on the stone. A drove chisel is used for smoothing off roughly finished stones. Mixing mortar is normally done today with mortar mixers which usually use a rotating drum or rotating paddles to mix the mortar. The masonry trowel is used for the application of the mortar between and around the stones as they are set into place. Filling in the gaps (joints) with mortar is referred to as pointing. Pointing in smaller joints can be accomplished using tuck pointers, pointing trowels, and margin trowels, among other tools. A mason's hammer has a long thin head and is called a Punch Hammer. It would be used with a chisel or splitter for a variety of purposes A walling hammer (catchy hammer) can be used in place of a hammer and chisel or pincher to produce rubble or pinnings or snecks. Stonemasons use a Lewis (lifting appliance), lewis together with a Crane (machine), crane or block and tackle to hoist building stones into place. Today power tools such as compressed-air chisels, abrasive spinners, and angle grinders are much used: these save time and money, but are hazardous and require just as much skill as the hand tools that they augment. But many of the basic tools of stonemasonry have remained virtually the same throughout vast amounts of time, even thousands of years, for instance when comparing chisels that can be bought today with chisels found at the pyramids of Giza the common sizes and shapes are virtually unchanged.


Training

Traditionally medieval stonemasons served a seven-year apprenticeship. A similar system still operates today. A modern apprenticeship lasts three years. This combines on-site learning through personal experience, the experience of the tradesmen, and college work where apprentices are given an overall experience of the building, hewing and theory work involved in masonry. In some areas, colleges offer courses which teach not only the manual skills but also related fields such as drafting and blueprint reading or construction conservation. Electronic Stonemasonry training resources enhance traditional delivery techniques. Hands-on workshops are a good way to learn about stonemasonry also. Those wishing to become stonemasons should have little problem working at heights, possess reasonable hand-eye coordination, be moderately physically fit, and have basic mathematical ability. Most of these things can be developed while learning. The modern stonemason undergoes comprehensive training, both in the classroom and in the working environment. Hands-on skill is complemented by an intimate knowledge of each stone type, its application, and best uses, and how to work and fix each stone in place. The mason may be skilled and competent to carry out one or all of the various branches of stonemasonry. In some areas, the trend is towards specialization, in other areas towards adaptability. Today's stonemasons undergo training that is quite comprehensive and is done both in the work environment and in the classroom. It isn't enough to have hands-on skills only. One must also have knowledge of the types of stones as well as its best uses and how to work it as well as how to fix it in place.Walters Masonr
"History of Stonemasonry"


Types of stone

Stonemasons use all types of natural stone: igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary; while some also use artificial stone as well.


Igneous stones

*Granite is one of the hardest stones, and requires such different techniques to sedimentary stones that it is virtually a separate trade. With great persistence, simple mouldings can and have been carved from granite, for example in many Cornwall, Cornish churches and in the city of Aberdeen. Generally, however, it is used for purposes that require its strength and durability, such as kerbstones, countertops, flooring, and Breakwater (structure), breakwaters. *Igneous stone ranges from very soft rocks such as pumice and scoria to somewhat harder rocks such as tuff to the hardest rocks such as granite and basalt.


Metamorphic

*Marble is a fine, easily worked stone, that comes in various colours, but mainly white. It has traditionally been used for carving statues, and for facings of many Byzantine and Italian Renaissance buildings. Prominent Greek sculptors, such as Antenor (6th century BC), Phidias and Critias (5th century BC), Praxiteles (4th century BC) and others used mainly the marble of Paros and Thassos islands, and the whitest and brightest of all (although not the finest), the Pentelikon marble. Their work was preceded by older sculptors from Mesopotamia and Egypt, but the Greeks were unmatched in plasticity and realistic (re)presentation, either of Gods (Apollo, Aphrodite, Hermes, Zeus, etc.), or humans (Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Phryne, etc.). The famous Acropolis of Athens is said to be constructed using the Pentelicon marble. The traditional home of the marble industry is the area around Carrara in Italy, from where a bright and fine, whitish marble is extracted in vast quantities. *Slate is a popular choice of stone for memorials and inscriptions, as its fine grain and hardness means it leaves details very sharp. Its tendency to split into thin plates has also made it a popular roofing material.


Sedimentary

Many of the world's most famous buildings have been built of sedimentary stone, from Durham Cathedral to St. Peter's Basilica, St Peter's in Rome. There are two main types of sedimentary stone used in masonry work, limestones and sandstones. Examples of limestones include Bath stone, Bath and Portland stone. Yorkstone and Sydney sandstone are the most commonly used sandstone.


Gallery

File:Steinmetz.jpg, An apprentice carving a block File:341 Cameron stonecutter - USACE-p15141coll5-15650.jpeg, Stonemason at the construction of the Kabul-Kandahar Highway in Afghanistan, 1961 File:Stone Mason marks as seen in the Chapter House of Fountains Abbey.jpg, Three different stonemason's marks, which can be seen in the Chapter House of Fountains Abbey File:Taile de pierre.jpg, A modern stonemason's workbench with a block of limestone File:Taille depierre 2.jpg, Typical French chisels with wooden hilt, used for soft limestone File:Fotothek df roe-neg 0000431 004 Steinmetz auf dem Seitenschiffdach der Hofkirche.jpg, A left-handed stonemason with mallet and chisel File:Knüpfel retouched.jpg, Stonemason's mallets of plastic, Beech tree, beechwood and steel File:Tailleur de pierre.jpg, A stonemason and his tools


See also

*''The Stonemason (book), The Stonemason'' – 2020 non-fiction book by Andrew Ziminski * * * * * * * * Categories: *:Stonemasonry tools, Stonemasonry tools


References


External links


History Extra interview with Stonemason Andrew ZiminskiThe Stone Foundation OrgA Return To Form: The Renaissance Of Structural Stone
{{Authority control Stonemasonry, de:Steinmetz