The Science of Brickmaking is an excellent manual for the everyday reader to understand how to make the basic brick for building any wall or house. Contents: Fluviatile Brick-Earths, Lacustrine and Fluviatile Brick-Earths, Marine Brick-Earths, the Mineral Constitution of Brick-Earths, cont.

Highly illustrated throughout, this is the story of brickmaking in the UK told by an expert in the field.

"The purpose of this study is simply to provide the information necessary for the proper interpretation of kiln-fired clay bricks found at archaeological sites. Bricks made of adobe, cement, or sand-lime are not included. Much of the emphasis has been placed on manufacturing techniques and the traces these processes leave behind, because they are a rich source of information that has been ignored by archaeologists. Brand names or trademarks found on some bricks have also been researched. This has led to the surprising conclusion that during the nineteenth century large quantities of firebricks were imported into the Pacific Northwest from England and Scotland. Size, color, and composition of bricks have also been examined. Extensive historical evidence as well as data from several archaeological sites complete the picture of an early and vigorous industry in the Pacific Northwest."--Preface.

Bricks were introduced to Britain by the Romans and reintroduced by Flemish craftsmen in the middle ages. Until the early nineteenth century they were made in numerous small brickyards supplying local needs, but eventually increasing demand led to the invention of improved brickmaking machines and kilns. This book gives an insight into the surprising variety of bricks, as well as a brief history of brickmaking, descriptions of hand and machine moulding, drying, the use of kilns and firing. Despite competition from newer materials, brick still holds its own as a facing material and traditional methods still survive in the smaller yards.