>Do we know of anyone doing mortar analysis in Baghdad?
>
> ][<


An Iranian architect friend from the old Iran tells of working for many 
years doing agricultural and village buildings for the Ministry of 
Agriculture there.    Adobe brick was the common building material, and he 
said they did a lot of research into adobe structure stability because of 
the high earthquake risk and tradition of collapse in times of quake.   He 
said they came up with an additive of a certain percentage of asphalt tar to 
the adobe mix that really made a difference in preventing the bricks from 
shattering and buildings collapsing.   Presumably that was used in the mud 
mortar too.

He also tells of the perfection required for government buildings by the 
Federal Building Inspector.   Interior plastered walls were to be so 
perfectly vertical and planer (plainish?) that the test was for the 
inspector to throw a bag of chalk dust in the air in a room and then seal 
the doors for 24 hours.   When he returned to inspect, any wall surface or 
area with chalk hanging on it had to be redone.

cp in bc 

--
To terminate puerile preservation prattling among pals and the
uncoffee-ed, or to change your settings, go to:
<http://listserv.icors.org/archives/bullamanka-pinheads.html>