Roman bricks

Most remarkable in Roman brickwork – opus testaceum – are the shapes of the bricks as they were laid triangularly or polygonally with their longest edge to the face. These shapes were used to achieve the best bonding between the brick mantle and the inner core, which was made from mortar and caementa. Originally the bricks were produced as cuboids: comparatively flat square shapes in standardized dimensions with an edge length of 2/3, 1 ½ or 2 Roman feet. So, the bricks had to be divided up into triangular or polygonal construction material. Mainly three different assumptions of the dividing methods are given in literature – one before firing, two after firing. Besides tackling the questions, what kinds of tools were used, how exactly Roman bricks were divided, who did this and how long it took, the study aims at a better understanding of Roman building processes.
In a first step Roman brick surfaces, mainly in Rome and Latium, were analyzed to classify the features. Next a differentiation was made between those surfaces originating from the brick core, which show the visible result of the former division operation and their counterparts, which feature the traces of the former molding and are easier to recognize. Some processing traces, which are characteristic of the division operation, have been identified. In order to understand these observations and to interpret them appropriately 20 bessales-sized bricks were manufactured. Subsequently various dividing methods were tested on these bricks.

Nachfolgend sollen die Funde aus der schon aufgefundenen Ziegelei im Bereich der Parzellen 441, 442 und 443 zusammengefasst werden. Eine umfangreichere Arbeit bezüglich des Ziegeleigewerbes im Umland des Kastells Locus Felicis ist in Arbeit und wird auch die wirtschaftliche Bedeutung und Nutzung dieser Anlagen in den Vordergrund rücken, sowie diese in den Kontext zu anderen Betrieben stellen. Diese erste kurze Abhandlung zielt lediglich darauf ab, die bisher zu Tage getretenen Stempelfunde in der Ziegelei des Petronius zu dokumentieren.

In the following short paper i would like to present the found brickstamps in the only scientifically proven brickyard in the roman castell locus felicis in Wallsee-Sindelburg (Lower-Austria).

This paper deals with the technical aspects of ceramic building material production in the brickyard located near the legionary fortress of Vindobona (nowdays Vienna, Austria). First, the general procedures of brick manufacture are described, then the paper focuses on the material from Vindobona itself. Tegulae, which make up most of the preserved evidence, are also treated at some length. In comparison to other ceramic building material, tiles are more distinguishable, thus more criteria can be observed. The observed criteria were: treatment of the surface, proportions, types of lower cutaways and shape of flanges. On the basis of these criteria, it is possible to distinguish differences in working procedures, which may relate to a change of units in the fortress and an exchange of workers within one unit. Attention is also paid to the economic aspect of production, which is reconstructed on the basis of the‑ oretical calculations. The amount of material necessary for the construction of camps was calculated along with the estimated time which it took to produce this material and the necessary work ‑power. The last part deals with the distribution of bricks to the forts in the upper Pannonian Limes, with an attempt to determine if the material was transported to the construction sites from Vindobona or was produced on the sites. The results show it was more cost effective to transport the material over even long distances.

The present study focuses on bricks found during the excavation of the East Baths sector of Labraunda ancient site. Based on the big variety of forms and fabrics, but also due to the fact that this material is essential for building baths, a detailed study was conducted primarily on bricks to complete the excavation information and the architectural features. A more complete picture was obtained by correlating the ceramic building material data to the chronological frame brought by the pottery and other finds’ studies, and also to the archaeological information of the documented layers.
Concerning the production of the ceramic construction material, there was not any reject piece or fragments with serious defects of fabrication registered, which could indicate a local production. At the current stage of research, one can assume a rather regional production than a local one. To prove or eventually disprove this hypothesis, samples were selected and used to describe the different fabrics and microscopic photos were taken, while archaeometrical analyses are planned for the near future in order to have a more complete image about the production and the development along the centuries.