What is Stone Masonry?
Stone masonry or stone craft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculptures using stone as the primary material. In stonemasonry constructions, stone and mortar are used. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, monuments, artifacts, fortifications, roads, bridges, and entire cities were built of stone. Famous works of stonemasonry include the Egyptian Pyramids, the Taj Mahal, Cusco’s Incan Wall, Easter Island’s statues, Angkor Wat, Borobudur, Tihuanaaco, Persepolis, the Parthenon, Stonehenge, the Great Wall of China.
Classification of Stone Masonry
Broadly there are two classifications of stone masonry, namely
- Rubble masonry
- Ashlar masonry
Rubble Masonry
Rubble masonry is rough, uneven building stone set in mortar, but not laid in regular courses. It may appear as the outer surface of a wall or may fill the core of a wall that is faced with unit masonries such as brick or ashlar. The masonry has wider joints since stones of irregular sizes are used. Rubble masonry can be classified into
- Uncoursed Rubble Masonry
- Coursed Random Rubble Masonry
- Coursed Squared Rubble Masonry
- Polygonal Rubble Masonry
- Flint Rubble Masonry
- Dry Rubble Masonry
Coursed Rubble Masonry
This type of masonry is commonly used in the construction of low height walls of public buildings, residential buildings. The method of construction is the same as previous except that course is leveled having thickness 30 to 45 cm thick. All the courses are not of the same height. The stones of 5 to 20cm size are used in each course. Header stones are allowed about regular internal use in each course.
Uncoarsed Random Rubble Masonry
Cheapest, roughest and poorest form of stone masonry. Stones used in this type are of widely different sizes. Stones of irregular shape & size directly obtained quarry by removing the weak corners & edges by the hammer.
Coarsed Squared Rubble Masonry
This type of masonry is made up of hammer squared stones. The stones employed in each course are of equal height. To avoid thick mortar joints, small chips may be used. A good appearance can be achieved by using risers (large stones), leveler (thinner stones), sneck, or check (small stones) in a pattern having their depths in the ratio of 3:2:1. It is sometimes known as Square-snecked rubble.
Polygonal Rubble Masonry
In this type of masonry, the stones are roughly dressed in an irregular polygonal shape. The stones should be so arranged as to avoid long vertical joints in face work and to break joints as much as possible. Small stone chips should not be used to support the stones on the facing.
Flint Rubble Masonry
This type of masonry is used in the areas where the flint is available in plenty. These are the irregularly shaped nodules of silica. The flintstones varying in thickness from 8 to 15cm and in length from 15 to 30cm are arranged in the facing in the form of coursed or uncoursed masonry. These stones are brittle & therefore break easily. The strength of the flint wall may be increased by introducing lacing courses of either thin long stones or bricks at a vertical interval of 1 to 2 meters.
Dry Rubble Masonry
This type of masonry is used in the construction of retaining walls in agricultural land, pitching earthen dams and canal slopes in the form of random rubble masonry without any mortar. This type of construction is the cheapest & requires more skills in construction. The hollow spaces left around stones should be tightly packed with smaller stone pieces.
Ashlar Masonry
Ashlar masonry is a type of stone masonry that is formed using finely dressed stones of the same size, shape, and texture laid together in cement or lime mortar of equal size joints at right angles to each other. The blocks may be either square or rectangular. The masonry has very fine joints of the order of 3mm thick. It is the highest grade of masonry work & is very costly. Some of the various ashlar masonries are classified given below
- Ashlar fine
- Ashlar rough
- Ashlar facing
- Ashlar chamfered
Ashlar fine
This is the finest type of masonry where perfectly dressed stones are used. The height of the courses is never less than 30cm & generally, all the courses are kept at the same height. The stones are generally laid as header & stretcher alternately. The bed & side joints in this type of work should never exceed 5mm in thickness.
Ashlar rough
In this type, the exposed faces should have a fine chisel drafting. The Thickness of mortar joints does not exceed 6mm. The size, angle, edges, etc are maintained in an order similar to that for dressed ashlar. It is also known as bastard ashlar
Ashlar rock or quarry faced
Ashlar facing masonry is provided along with brick or concrete block masonry, to give a better appearance. Face stones are rough tooled. The height of the stone should not be less than 20 cm. The backing is made up of brick, concrete, etc.
Ashlar chamfered
This masonry is similar to the one described above with the only difference that the edges around the exposed faces of stone are leveled off at an angle of 45° for the depth of 25 mm or more.
Difference between brick masonry and stonemasonry
| Properties | Brick masonry | Stonemasonry |
| Strength | Less strength | High strength |
| Durability | Durability is less | Durability is high |
| Appearance | Plastering required | No external treatment required |
| Fire resistance | More | less |
| Cost | less | More |
| Uses | Residential and public building | Pier, dam and residential building |
| Min.compressive strength | 3.5 N/mm2 | 100 N/mm2 |
Merits of a Stone Masonry
- Stone Masonry have a timeless and unique appearance.
- They are Fireproof.
- They possess Sturdy structural material.
- They are Durable.
- They are easy to clean and maintain.
Demerits of a Stone Masonry
- Stone masonry are more expensive than other materials.
- They must be laid properly and with care.
- They require professional installation.
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