Built to last, stone construction

Stone masonry is a type of building masonry construction that uses stones and mortar. This construction technique is used for building foundations, floors, retaining walls, arches, walls and columns. The stones used for masonry construction are natural rocks. These natural rocks are cut and dressed into proper shape in order to use it in masonry construction. Stones are one of the most durable and strong building materials.

Stone is a natural material derived from rocks. It has no definite shape but is a mixture of two or more minerals. Masonry is the construction of building units bonded together 

 with mortar.

masonry is built from accurately dressed stones in uniform and fine joints of about 3 mm thickness by arranging the stone blocks in various patterns.

The backing of masonry Ashlar walls may be built of Ashlar masonry or rubble masonry. The size of the stones blocks should be in proportion to wall thickness.

In this type of ashlar masonry, the beds, sides, and faces finely chisel-dressed. The stones arrange in proper bond and the thickness of the mortar joints does not exceed 3 mm. This type of construction gives a perfectly smooth appearance, but it is costly in construction.

In this type of ashlar masonry, the beds and dies are finely chisel-dressed. But the face is made rough by means of tools. A strip, about 25 mm wide and made by means of a chisel, is provided around the perimeter of every stone exposed for view. The thickness of the mortar joints does not exceed 6 mm. This type of work is also known as the bastard ashlar.

 It is a special type of ashlar rock-faced in which the strip provided around the perimeter of the exposed face is chamfered at an angle of 45° to a depth of 25 mm.

It is immediate between ashlar and rubble masonry. Faces of each stone are hammer dressed but the vertical joints are not as straight and fine as in ashlar masonry.

In this type of ashlar masonry, a strip about 25 mm wide and made by means of a chisel, is provided around the perimeter portion of the face is left in the same form as received from the quarry. Only projections on the face, known as the bushings, exceeding 80 mm remove by a hammer. This type of construction gives a massive appearance. 

The rubble masonry in which the face stones are squared on all joints and beds by hammer dressing or chisel dressing before their actual laying, is called squared rubble masonry.

There are two types of squared rubble masonry.

The square rubble masonry in which chisel dressed stones laid in courses is called coarse square rubble masonry. This is a superior variety of rubble masonry. It consists of stones, which are squared on all joints and laid in courses. The stones are to be laid in courses of equal layers. and the joints should also be uniform.

The squared rubble in masonry which hammer dressed stones are laid without making courses is called un coursed square rubble masonry. It consists of stones which are squared on all joints and beds by hammer dressing. All the stones to be laid are of different size.

The rubble masonry in which stones are laid without using any mortar is called dry rubble masonry or sometimes shortly as "dry stones". It is an ordinary masonry and is recommended for constructing walls of height not more than 6m. In case the height is more, three adjacent courses are laid in squared rubble masonry mortar at 3m intervals.

Random Rubble Masonry:

 In this type, the weak corners and edges of the stone are removed with the help of a mason’s hammer. At the quoins and jambs, bigger stones are employed in order to increase the strength of the masonry