The first brick kiln who invented. The history of brick and the development of its production
Construction at any time was an actual matter. Absolutely nothing has changed over the years, only architectural ideas, styles and, no doubt, building materials have changed over the centuries. In addition to its external attributes, any building material must be strong, durable and functional. Nowadays, silicate brick is suitable for these signs.
Silicate brick: history and application
Construction has always been a useful occupation. Nothing has changed at all over the years, only over the centuries have architectural ideas, styles and, undoubtedly, building materials become different. Besides the presence of aesthetic properties, each building material must be strong, durable and effective. Today, silicate bricks are suitable for these items.
The production of silicate bricks became widespread and popular at the dawn of the 20th century, and ways of obtaining them began to be developed at the end of the 19th century. The silicate itself, from which the brick is made, is an alloy of mineral substances, among which silica is the main component.
Brick factories that produce sand-lime bricks easily find a sales market and customers. Brick sales are being realized for a large number of consumers. These are various types of corporations and regional enterprises, as well as individual entrepreneurs... Global construction can take place, or just cladding work.
A building material such as silicate brick, without question, occupies a worthy position in the forefront, and has quite good physical properties, similar to those of ceramic bricks. Properties such as high frost resistance, the ability to equalize the temperature-humidity ratio, and even fire-fighting properties predominantly prevail over ceramic building materials.
Having the correct geometric shapes, silicate brick, which is determined by the standards, can be porous-hollow, hollow, with a porous filler, full-bodied modular, that is, enlarged, with dimensions of 250x120x88 mm and full-bodied single with dimensions of 250x120x65 mm.
Sand-lime brick is called a non-fired wall building material made by pressing a wet mixture composed of sand and lime aggregates with special binders. The sand-lime brick is hardened by steam autoclaving. The weight of the finished thickened brick is about 4.3 kilograms.
GOST, which distinguishes building materials, designates bricks and stones, called ordinary and front, gray and colored (painted with the entire volume or with processing of the surfaces of the outer edges).
But it should be borne in mind that sand-lime brick is not applicable when it comes to building the foundations of buildings, the level of which is under the influence of sewage and groundwater. Also, you do not need to build structures, the walls of which will be in a damp state (laundries or baths). The silicate material is not designed to withstand the high temperatures from furnaces and pipes.
As the best way out of the situation - the use of silicate bricks with increased cold resistance. For the assembly of walls and blocks, for the construction of internal and external structures with suitable levels of humidity and as a means of facing for facades of different buildings, silicate bricks are definitely indispensable.
As an environmentally friendly insulation made by accelerated firing of fusible clay, expanded clay, working together with silicate bricks, can be considered an excellent and functional alliance of building materials.
The silicate brick factory uses gypsum ore and makes plastering and finishing materials. This is a lump and ground technological multidirectional application. The silicate shop also sells fine crushed stone, which is required for road construction.
P.A.Rappoport. Construction production of Ancient Russia (X-XIII centuries)
Brick is the most common material in the construction industry of Ancient Rus. It is therefore natural that brick technique has always attracted the attention of historians of ancient Russian architecture. However, the technological side of brick production has remained essentially completely unexplored. In works devoted to this issue, more or less significant data were given only for the time starting from the 17th century, and only a few, moreover, often incorrect information were known about the brick production of the pre-Mongol period. ( Konorov A.V. On the history of brick in Russia in the XI-XX centuries. // Tr. Institute of History of Natural Science and Technology. M., 1956. T. 7; Chernyak Ya.N. Essays on the history of brick production in Russia. M., 1957 .)
Meanwhile, recent archaeological studies of the monuments of Old Russian architecture and brick kilns allow (in comparison with written sources and ethnographic materials) to present in general terms a picture of the brick production of Ancient Russia.
Brick molding. Since the construction of the first stone-brick building in Kiev at the end of the 10th century. and up to the Mongol invasion in the middle of the XIII century. the bricks used in Russia were in the form of thin and relatively wide tiles. In ancient Russian written sources, bricks were called the Greek word "plinth" (variants - "plint", "plinth"). ( Since the XIV century. in Russia the term “brick” was also used. This word has a Turkic origin and penetrated, as some researchers believe, from the language of the Volga Tatars (Yunaleeva RA., Galiullin K.R. To the history of the word "brick" in Russian // Uchen. Zap. Azerb. Ped. In-ta rus . language and lit. 1974. No. 1. P. 44 ). In the XIV century. the terms "plinth" and "brick" were used interchangeably ( Sreznevsky I.I. Materials for the dictionary of the Old Russian language. SPb., 1893. T. 1. Stb. 1209; 1902. T. 2. Stb. 965 ) This type of bricks penetrated into Russia from Byzantium.
Brick production, which at first glance seems to be a very simple matter, in reality requires special knowledge and a lot of experience. First of all, not all clay is suitable for making good bricks. In addition, in the clay, so that it does not crack during firing and has the necessary strength, there must be a certain amount of sand. Usually, pure clay is chosen for brick production, and sand is added artificially. The best clay is one that gives a linear shrinkage of 6-8% ( Gonchar P.D. The simplest ways to make bricks. M., 1958.S. 4 .).
An analysis of the bricks of ancient Russian monuments showed that during the entire XI century. kaolin clay was used for bricks, which sometimes had to be brought from afar. ( N.V. Kholostenko Architectural and archaeological research of the Assumption Cathedral of the Yeletsky Monastery in Chernigov // Cultural Monuments. M., 1961.Vol. 3.P. 63 .). Bricks made from such clay are usually not red, but pink, fawn or light yellow. By the end of the 11th century, apparently other types of clay were also used. In the XII century. local clay was already widely used for making bricks. Moreover, the variety of clays in the bricks of one site is a rare phenomenon. Sometimes in masonry there are two types of bricks, clearly made of two different types of clay. For example, in the Old Cathedral Church near Volodymyr-Volynsky, most of the bricks are red, but almost 30% are light yellow and white. The presence of bricks of two colors, red and light yellow, was also noted in the Annunciation Church of Chernigov. Yet more often than not, within the limits of each monument, bricks are homogeneous in clay composition; apparently, for construction, clay was usually taken from one quarry.
The brought clay was kneaded in pits. After that, the molding of the raw materials began. We can, to a certain extent, judge the molding system by the traces preserved on the ancient Russian bricks themselves. Obviously, the clay was stuffed into a wooden frame, and then the excess was cut with a wooden knife (rule) to the level of the upper edge of the frame. Traces of this molding can be clearly seen on many bricks. The top surface of bricks is usually smooth and often has slight scratches along the long axis - evidence of the rule's sliding.
The underside of bricks is usually slightly rough; this is the print of the backing board that was lying on the forming table. The absence of a bottom in the mold frame is confirmed by the location of convex marks, sometimes found on the lower surface of the bricks. Signs imprinted in one form are located on the bed side in different positions, and sometimes they are so shifted to the side that we see the imprint of only part of the sign, while the rest of it has gone beyond the brick surface. (Marked, for example, on the bricks of the Borisoglebsk cathedral of the Smyadyn monastery in Smolensk). Such a position of the signs could exist only in one case: if the form for the imprint of the sign was cut not on the bottom of the frame, but on the backing board.
Thus, it turns out that the frames for molding bricks did not have a bottom and, apparently, coincided in type with the frame-"span" used in Russia in the artisanal production of bricks until the 19th century. ( Krupskiy A.K. Brick production // Encyclopedic Dictionary / Brockhaus and Efron. SPb., 1895. T. 15, [book] 29. S. 133 .)
There are convex marks on the ends of the bricks. These marks, as a rule, are clearly executed, not blurred. If the form for them was cut out in the side wall of the frame, the absence of blurring of the signs indicates that the frames were detachable. (In ethnography, detachable frames are marked, tied with a rope ( Belavenets M.I. Clay studies; Brick production; Chikmarny method of forming a raw material for building bricks. SPb., 1903.S. 2 ) However, sometimes bricks have a slight curvature, and the concave is always the smooth (top) side. Obviously, such a curvature could occur when the raw material was knocked out of the frame, which is possible only with an integral frame.
A detailed measurement of the bricks molded in one frame (as evidenced by the coincidence of the marks imprinted on the ends) showed their difference in size: 1 cm in the thickness of the brick and up to 2 cm in its length and width. Obviously, the primitive molding system itself, as well as the difference in drying and firing conditions, allowed such an error.
It is known from ethnographic data that when dried, the raw materials were first laid flat, and then turned on the edge, after which they were stacked (or "banquets"). ( Semenov M.I. Brick buildings and brick production in the Almazov volost of the Balashov district // Saratov Zemskaya week. 1903. No. 12. S. 73; Experience in making bricks by hand. Omsk, 1957. .) The drying process lasted 10-14 days, but under unfavorable weather conditions it took a month. (In a document of the 17th century, it is noted: "And in bad weather, a brick does not dry ... and you cannot plant a damp brick in a furnace" ( Speransky A.N. Essays on the history of the Order of Stone Affairs of the Moscow State. M., 1930.S. 86 ). It is very likely that ancient Russian bricks were dried in about the same way, although, given their small thickness, they were unlikely to be placed on the edge. Squared Gothic bricks were stacked up to 10-12 rows. ( Tomaszewski Z. Badania cegl y jako metoda pomocnicza przy datowaniu obiektow architektonicznych // Zoszyty naukowe politechniki warszawskiej. Warszawa, 1955. N11 (Budownictwo), z. 4. S. 34; Wyrobisz A. Szedniowieczne cegielnie w wiekszych oszodkach miejskjch w Polsce // Studia z dziejow rzemioste i przemysfu. Wroclaw, 1961. T. 1.S.68 .) In the handicraft industry of the XX century. bricks in "banquets" were laid at a height of 6-8 rows. ( Gonchar P.D. Decree. op. P. 25 .) It is not known what kind of drying stacks were in Ancient Rus, but to some extent this can be judged by the imprints on the bricks themselves. It is obvious that in different construction centers the drying of raw materials was carried out in different ways. So, on the Kiev, Pereyaslavl, Grodno bricks there are prints of the feet of children, domestic animals and birds, traces of rain ( fig. 1). Apparently, the raw materials were dried here on the ground in the open air. At the same time, there are no traces on the Smolensk and Polotsk bricks; judging by this, drying was carried out under a shed (probably in special sheds). In Smolensk, on the lower plane and on the edges of the bricks, several times it was possible to notice fabric prints; it is possible that during drying it was laid under the raw materials, although ethnographic facts show that usually the drying area was simply sprinkled with sand. In Novgorod on bricks of the late XII-early XIII century. one of the beds always has distinct grass prints. Sometimes on ancient Russian bricks there are fingerprints of a human hand - obviously, traces of transporting and laying raw materials.
Bricks were not molded all year round, but only during the construction season. This is clearly evidenced by ethnographic facts, according to which the brick molding season lasted from approximately May 20 to September 1, i.e. included about 900-1000 business days. (This was the length of the season in the 19th century ( Rochefor N.I. Illustrated Term Position. Pg., 1916.S. 295; Krupskiy A.K. Brick production. P. 134 ). Even in the post-revolutionary years, the brick-making season in Russia lasted no more than 3.5 months ( Yagodin V.G. Brick production. M .; D., 1930.S. 47 ). There is no reason to believe that in the XII century. the season was longer ( Trades of the rural population of the Pskov district. Pskov, 1888.S. 58; Study of handicrafts in the Saratov province. Saratov, 1913. Issue 5. P. 22 ). It is most likely that the bricks required for the construction of a small temple were harvested in one season, but for large buildings it may have been necessary to make them two or even three seasons in a row. Judging by ethnographic data, an experienced craftsman made up to 1500 pieces of raw material per working day. (Study of handicrafts in the Saratov province. P. 23. According to other sources, one molder with two auxiliary workers made 2500 pieces per day ( Weber K.K. A practical guide to brick production. SPb., 1893.S. 107 ). However, the data of the 17th century. show a much lower productivity: only 2000 bricks per molder per month. ( Speransky A.N. Decree. op. P. 87 .).
It should be noted that in the process of drying and firing, the bricks are significantly reduced in size. Therefore, in order to obtain a fired brick of the required size, it was necessary to make the forming frame slightly larger in size. Obviously, the craftsmen took into account some empirically found coefficient of clay shrinkage. (At the end of the 10th century, during the construction of defensive ramparts, raw masonry was used. These unfired plinths are larger in size than the fired ones used at the same time in Kiev construction. It is very possible that the difference in dimensions in this case corresponds to the percentage of shrinkage during firing ( the size of raw materials see: Rappoport P.A. Essays on the history of Russian military architecture of the X-XIII centuries. M .; L., 1956.S. 78,80,84,88 ). When choosing a format, the craftsmen, of course, determined the size of the raw brick, and not the size of the fired brick. In the 18th century. the brick standard was even determined by the size of the raw brick ( E.V. Karaulov Stone structures, their development and preservation. M., 1966.S. \u200b\u200b8 ) At the same time, they had to be especially careful that the resulting brick was not larger than the intended size, since any increase in the format entails a complication of the firing process, therefore, a deterioration in quality. In addition, the increase in brick format makes the work of bricklayers more difficult. ( The advantages of a reduction in the format of bricks were not forgotten in the 20th century either: “With smaller bricks, the drying and firing of raw materials proceeds more evenly, why the quality of bricks increases significantly ... the work of carriers and masons is facilitated” (Lakhtin N. More about the size of a standard building brick // Building industry. 1929. No. 2. P. 160; see also: B. Venderoe What is preferable in construction - to reduce or increase the size of the brick // Ibid. P. 156 ). However, this does not exclude the presence of an opposite trend related to the interests of customers, since the increase in the size of the bricks provided a number of economic advantages. Therefore the intervention government agencies sometimes led to an increase in the standard size of bricks, as was the case, for example, with the introduction of the "great sovereign brick" at the end of the 16th century. ( Rappoport P.A. Russian hipped roof architecture of the late 16th century // MIA. 1949. No. 12.P. 294 ) It is therefore natural that in the manufacture of the molding frames, the craftsmen introduced, as a rule, the minimum shrinkage coefficient, which was usually somewhat less than the actual shrinkage coefficient. As a result, the brick format tended to decrease gradually. (Reducing the size of bricks is also characteristic of Byzantine architecture ( see, for example, the dimensions of bricks given in the work of E. Reusche: Reusche E. Polychromes Sichtmauerwerk byzantinischer und for Byzanz beeinflusster Bauten Siidosteuropas. Kbln, 1971 ). In Georgia from IV to XVI century. the length of the bricks was reduced by about 10-15 cm ( Dzhgamaya D.K. Building ceramics of feudal Georgia. Tbilisi, 1980.S. 94-98 )
Firing bricks. The archaeological study of Old Russian brick kilns began relatively recently. True, already in 1891 in the village. A tent near Staraya Ryazan, two brick kilns were discovered (the arches of the kiln and its walls are well preserved - ( See: Tr. Ryazan is scholar, archir. kamis. behind. 1891 Ryazan, 1892.Vol. 6.P. 43 .). A.V. who examined them. Selivanov reported that a description had been made and that the drawings had been removed. Unfortunately, neither the description nor the drawings have reached us. The absence of genuine kilns made it necessary to judge the firing mainly by the bricks themselves. The similarity between brick production and pottery production allowed researchers to look for traces of brick kilns among the remains of conventional pottery-type kilns. Meanwhile, the idea has long been expressed that the very mass production of brick production should have caused the use of other, more complex and much larger furnaces. Indeed, the very first genuine brick kiln, discovered by excavations in 1949 in Suzdal, turned out to be unlike ordinary ceramic furnaces (Fig. 2). ( Varganov A.D. Kilns XI-XII centuries in Suzdal // KSIIMK. 1956. Iss. 65.S. 49. In 1946 M.K. Karger unearthed a large structure on the estate of St. Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, which he interpreted as a brick kiln (see: Karger M.K. Ancient Kiev. Moscow; Leningrad, 1958, vol. 1, p. 458 ). However, soon V.A. Bogusevich convincingly showed that this structure could not be a brick kiln, but represents the remains of a bath ( see: Bogusevich V.A. Sporuda of the XI century at the courtyard of the Metropolitan of Kiev // Archeology. 1961 T. 13, p. 105 ) Unfortunately, the oven has not been studied enough and therefore many of its details remain unclear. The Suzdal oven is cut into the slope of the left bank of the river. Stoves. It is rectangular in plan; the outer size is approximately 3.4 x 4.5 m. There are six partitions across the furnace, with an opening in the middle part covered with an arch - the main furnace channel. The height of the partitions is 1.2 m; they are covered with a horizontal brick platform, which forms a rectangular hole above each section of the channels - a duct. Only the lower furnace chamber has survived, and fallen blocks of masonry were found from the upper furnace chamber. The walls and partitions are made of bricks on clay mortar. The thickness of the side and rear walls is 32 cm, the middle one is 60 cm. The firebox has not been preserved. The inner surface of the walls is slagged from the action of strong fire, and the outer ones are raw. Obviously, the oven was made of raw materials that were fired during its operation. The size of the oven bricks is 4 x 20 x 32 cm, but there are also larger ones - 4 x 20 x 37 cm, and in the arches, on the contrary, smaller ones - 3 x 19 x 28 cm.The thickness of the horizontal joints of the clay mortar is 3-4 cm. The inner space of the furnace turned out to be clogged with clay and a cultural layer. Fragments of unused bricks were found nearby - apparently the products of this furnace. The thickness of the bricks is 3.5 - 4 cm, the sides of several fragments are 32 and 37 cm. On the slope of the opposite bank of the river, traces of a second, probably similar furnace were found. The Suzdal stove, apparently, dates back to the construction of the Monomakh Cathedral, i.e. to the turn of the XI-XII centuries.
Figure: 3. Brick kiln in Kiev. Reconstruction by V.A. Kharlamov | Figure: 4. Brick kiln in Smolensk on the Protoka. Axonometry |
Figure: 5. Brick kiln in Smolensk on the Protoka. View from the west | Figure: 6. Brick kiln in Smolensk on the Protok |
In 1974, two furnaces were excavated in Kiev, almost next to the Tithe Church, to the northwest of it. ( Kilievich S.R. Detinets of Kiev XI-first half of the XIII century. Kiev, 1982.S. 74 .) The first has a rectangular shape: 4.8 x 4.0 m ( fig. 3). The outer, better preserved walls are very thick - about 1 m. Only the combustion chamber is partially preserved; it is double, divided along the oven by an inner wall. The outer walls of the kiln are composed of four rows of raw materials on clay mortar, and the inner partition is made of two rows. The dimensions of the two chambers of the furnace are 2.7 x 0.9 and 3.0 x 0.9 m. The height of the walls of the combustion chamber reaches 1.3 m. No traces of the burning chamber were found, but there is no doubt that there must have been a plenum with vents here. The bottom of the furnace and the inner surface of the walls of the combustion chamber are slagged, and the entire body is calcined to red to a depth of 40 cm. 3.5 m north-west of the first furnace, the remains of the second were discovered, apparently exactly the same, but more destroyed. The raw bricks from which the ovens are made have a size of 6.5-7 x 25-27 x 28 cm, and in the outer walls - 6.5-7 x 28 x 39-40 cm. Nearby were found stuck together blocks of defective bricks - apparently, the remains of products. The size of the bricks is 2.5 x 24 x 28 cm. C.R. Kilievich dates the excavated furnaces to the end of the 10th century, i.e. construction time Tithe Church ... The basis for this dating is the coincidence of the levels of the daytime surface of the furnace and the church, the determination made by the archeomagnetic method, and the size of the bricks. Unfortunately, not all of these arguments are indisputable, since the size of the bricks practically does not coincide with that of the Tithe Church. Dating of the excavated furnaces to the end of the 10th century. so far remains not fully proven, although very likely.
In 1980, at the estate of the Sofia Reserve, to the northeast of the cathedral, during excavations, fragments of a brick kiln were uncovered, apparently similar to a furnace near the Tithes Church. ( Totskaya I.F. On the question of construction production in Ancient Rus // Tez. chernig. region scientific method. conf., dedicated. 20th anniversary of Chernihiv. architect-ist. reserve. Chernigov, 1987. S. 28.) Not far from the stove in 1946, during the excavation of the bath building, a large pit (more likely a ravine) was discovered, filled with defective plinths. The literature also mentions another small furnace, opened near the St. Sophia Cathedral (New in the archeology of Kiev. Kiev, 1981. S. 348). However, this kiln, judging by the products found in it, served for firing large vessels, not bricks. The bricks in the kiln were obviously used as supports for fired vessels.)
In 1951, a different type of furnace was discovered in Chernigov. ( Bogusevich V.A.Archaeological excavations in Chernigov in 1949 and 1951 pp. // Archaeological monuments of the URSR. 1955.Vol. 5.P. 10 .) On a slope near the bank of the river, the lower part of a circular kiln was excavated, which had an outer diameter of slightly more than 5 m. The walls of the kiln were made of bricks on clay mortar. The average size of the bricks is 2.8 x 27 x 35 cm. The wall thickness is one brick, i.e. slightly more than 30 cm; these walls have been preserved in places up to six rows of masonry. From the side of the slope to the river, the furnace had a mouth about 1 m wide. Inside the furnace, the remains of one transverse brick wall were found. Judging by the size and nature of the bricks from which the furnace is built and which were found inside it and nearby in the rubble, it belongs to the end of the XI-beginning of the XII century.
The most complete information about the design of Old Russian brick kilns was obtained in Smolensk. Stove tracks were encountered here many times. So, in 1931, the remains of one furnace were found on the right bank of the Mavrinsky brook (earlier - the Malaya Rachevka river). ( Archaeological find in Smolensk // Working way (Smolensk). 1931.29 Aug. No. 198; Message GAIMK. 1932, No. 5-6. P. 86. ) Unfortunately, no drawings of this furnace have survived, and it is impossible to understand its design from the description. How such a furnace worked and whether it was really a brick kiln, and not some other, is unclear.
In 1962, during excavations of the cathedral on the Protoka, about 160 m south-west of its ruins, the remains of a furnace were discovered. In 1963, this furnace was excavated ( fig. 4-6). (Yushko A. L. Brick kiln, late 12th century in Smolensk // Culture of Ancient Rus. M., 1966.S. \u200b\u200b307 .) It turned out that not one furnace existed here, but three, successively replacing one another at the same place - the upper, middle and lower furnaces are cut into the northern slope of the hilly ridge.
The upper oven is round in plan; its diameter is 4.2 m ( fig. 7). The outer wall of the kiln is made of raw bricks laid in one row with the long side along it. The masonry is made on clay mortar. The thickness of the seams is 3-4 cm. The maximum height of the remaining part of the wall is 0.5 m. The furnace is fenced off inside with seven transverse bridging walls, the distance between which is 15-20 cm. In contrast to the outer wall, the bridges are made of baked bricks laid with the long side across them. The thickness of the joints of the clay mortar in the lintels decreases upward, and the two upper rows of bricks are laid dry. The main furnace channel, formed by arched openings in the middle of each bulkhead, runs across the entire furnace across the bridges. The width of the arches of this channel is about 70 cm. The bottom of the furnace was covered with a layer of ash (3-6 cm) and burnt to a depth of 9 cm. The bottom rose slightly to the side walls. In the northern part of the furnace, on the line of the main furnace channel, there was a mouth covered with an arch 0.45 m wide. In front of it there is a narrow channel bounded by adobe walls, preserved to a height of 0.8 m. Bricks of the upper furnace are of two types; the overwhelming majority of them are 3-3.5 x 16-5-17 x 26-27 cm, and a small number - 3 x 145 x 25-25.5 cm.
Figure: 7. Upper brick kiln in Smolensk on the Protok | Figure: 11. Brick kiln in Smolensk on the street. Pushkin. Cuts: 1 - doors; 2 - sand; 3 - burnt brick; 4 - clay; 5 - burnt clay; 6 - brick battle; 7 - raw brick; 8 - brick; 9 - furnace production (bricks); 10 - ash; 11 - under the oven; 12 - clay solution; 13 - fired clay solution; 14 - mainland. |
The upper kiln was not built on mainland soil, but on the ruins of another kiln of the same type. Between the furnaces there is a layer of clay 6-10 cm thick.The middle furnace is slightly smaller in diameter than the upper one (3.15 m), and the direction of the channels and bridges of these furnaces does not completely coincide ( fig. 8). The outer wall of the middle kiln is made of raw materials lying with their long side along the wall, and near the mouth - of raw materials turned across the wall. The kiln had six bridges, which, unlike the upper kiln, were made not of fired bricks, but of raw bricks, although fired bricks are also encountered. The size of the bricks of the middle kiln is equal to the size of the bricks of the Protoka church. The signs on the bricks of the kiln and the cathedral also coincide. Thus, there is no doubt that the middle oven functioned during the construction of the cathedral on the Protoka. ( About the cathedral on the Protok see: Voronin N.N., Rappoport P.A. The architecture of Smolensk XII-XIII centuries. L., 1979.S. 300.)
Under the middle furnace, the remains of one more, lower one, lying directly on the mainland ( fig. nine). It has survived very badly and was only partially opened. The kiln was built exclusively from raw bricks, and they are the same size as the bricks of an average kiln. The coincidence of the size of the bricks, the size and position of the mouth and the main furnace channel allows us to conclude that the middle furnace was built during the repair of the lower one. During this repair, obviously, the bottom of the furnace was slightly raised and the lintels were shifted.
In 1972, in the western part of Smolensk, on the slopes of the Churilovsky ravine (Pushkin St.), the remains of a brick kiln were also discovered. In 1973 this oven was excavated (Fig. 10-12). ( For the publication of this furnace see: P.A. Rappoport. From the history of construction production in Ancient Rus // Zograf (Beograd). 1982. No. 13. P. 49.) It had a round shape with an outer diameter of 4.2 -4.3 m. The outer wall of the furnace was built in a pit dug in the mountainside, after which the space between it and the mainland soil was filled with clean clay. The wall consists of two layers, each with half bricks. In the inner layer, the bricks are poorly fired, 3-4 cm thick and 18-19 cm wide. In the outer layer, which is tightly adjacent to the inner layer, the bricks are raw. In both layers, a clay solution (i.e. clay with sand) serves as a binder. The wall of the furnace is not strictly vertical, but has a curvature: from below, to a height of about 1 m, it slightly expands, above it begins to narrow in an arc-like manner. The wall thickness is about 30 cm: in some places it has survived to a height of 1.6 m.The bottom of the furnace is earthenware, burnt to a depth of about 6 cm. at the marks reaches 40 cm. Inside the furnace, in the direction perpendicular to the firebox, there are seven bridging walls. They are made of fired bricks with dimensions 3.5 -3.8 x 17.5 -18 x 25.5 -26 cm. The masonry was made with clay mortar, but the top three rows of bricks were laid dry. The thickness of the lintels is one brick length, the height is 1.0-1.1 m. The distances between the lintels range from 15 to 30 cm, but initially, when the lintels were not deformed, these distances, apparently, did not exceed 20 cm. In the middle of each lintel there is an arched the opening is 75 -95 cm wide, 60 -80 cm high. The openings are located approximately one opposite the other, forming the main combustion channel. At the bottom of the furnace lay a layer of ash (12-25 cm), and above it, a layer of fine brick chips (8-10 cm). On top of these layers, the remains of the furnace were filled with pure red clay, pieces of raw and burnt bricks, with more clay in the middle of the furnace, and almost exclusively bricks along the edges. The bricks of the furnace channel arches had surfaces that had melted to the state of clinker, and the clay solution between the bricks was burnt like a brick. It turned out that initially the side walls of the lintels were coated with clay. By the time of the excavation, the lintels turned out to be strongly inclined and noticeably damaged in the upper parts. One of the arches (in the fourth lintel) was made in antiquity, as evidenced by the presence of an additional lower arch supporting it. The furnace firebox is completely destroyed by the late pit.
During the excavations, it turned out that the above-described furnace was built on the remains of another, similar one. The size of the furnaces and their position are the same, but in the northern part (near the mouth) the upper furnace stood half the thickness of the outer wall inward from the position of the lower one. The latter was only partially folded, after which it was filled with clay and fragments of bricks, among which even whole specimens were found. Remains of the bottom furnace's furnace have survived: large stones, apparently lying at the base of the furnace, and between them there is a lot of ash and burnt clay. On the sides of the destroyed firebox, large pits from the pillars were found, also probably related to the structure of the firebox. The bricks of the lower furnace do not differ in format from the bricks of the upper one. During excavations, several stacks of bricks were found between the lintels of the upper furnace, which fell through, apparently, during its destruction ( fig. 13). These are the remains of unselected products. The size of the bricks is 3.2-3.8 x 17-5-18-5 x 24-245 cm. Narrow bricks with a semicircular end were also found in the rubble - for laying out small semi-columns. Almost all of these bricks are weakly fired.
The kilns excavated in Smolensk in 1963 and 1973 are located in different parts of the city and, judging by the format of their bricks, are not entirely simultaneous. The furnace on the Protoka was built at the end of the 12th century. and rebuilt at the very beginning of the XIII century, while the oven on the street. Pushkin was built a little later, apparently around 1230.
Figure: 14. Brick kiln in Chernigov
In 1984, a complex of five furnaces was discovered in Chernigov on the bank of the river. Strizhen at the lake. Mlynovische. ( O. V. Schekun New plinfov and alluvial complex of the Chinese XII century in Chernigov // Persha Chernigivska oblasna naukova conf. s is. arts and crafts, privyach. XXVII s'izdu KPSS: Abstracts. dopovidey. Chernigiv, 1985.S. 104; Shchekun A.V., Kuznetsov G.A. Works in Chernigov // AO 1984 M., 1985. S. 329.) The ovens are located in one line, at a distance of about 2 m from one another. Two best-preserved ovens examined ( fig. fourteen). They are cut into the ground by 0.7 m, rectangular (4.8 x 4.6 and 4.1 x 3.6 m), separated inside by a wall running along the furnace. The mouth width is 0.8 m. The thickness of the outer walls is up to 0.9 m. The furnaces are made of plinth on clay. The plinth size is 26-30 x 17-24 x 3.5-4 cm. In the outer walls, raw bricks have survived. In the collapse, fragments of arched ceilings of furnace channels and air vents were found, connecting the preserved lower chambers with the unpreserved upper, burning ones. The authors of the excavations date the furnaces to the second half of the 12th century.
The Old Russian brick kilns identified so far can be divided into two groups, two independent types. One type includes the Kiev ovens and the Chernigov ovens at Mlynovische; to the second - all the rest. Kiev ovens are built on flat terrain and therefore have very thick walls. Inside, they are divided into two combustion chambers. The width of the chambers is such that they could not be covered with a flat brick hearth, but undoubtedly ended with a vaulted ceiling through which air vents had to pass. Chernihiv furnaces also had a division into two combustion chambers, a vaulted ceiling with vents. All other ovens are fundamentally different. There are thin walls everywhere across the furnace, through which the main furnace channel covered by arches runs along it. It can be noted that this type of furnace is presented in two options. One of them is the Suzdal furnace, which has a rectangular shape, and above the transverse walls - underneath of horizontally lying bricks. Another option is presented by the Smolensk furnaces and, judging by the plan, apparently also the first Chernigov one. In this embodiment, the furnaces are round, and the upper surfaces of the transverse walls served as the bottom of the burning chamber. The furnaces are cut into the slope, and therefore have rather thin walls.
Comparison of ancient Russian brick kilns with those of neighboring territories gives grounds to conclude that both types identified in Russia had a wide territorial distribution. So, several furnaces of the XI-XII centuries, intended for firing tiles, were excavated in Kherson ( Jacobson A.L. Pottery and ceramic production of medieval Taurica. L., 1979.S. 155; 2) Medieval Chersonese. M .; L., 1950.S. 155.). These ovens are pear-shaped or oval in plan. Their walls are made of adobe, and outside they are lined with stones. Walls are placed across the furnace through which the main furnace channel covered by arches passes. On the territory of Crimea, a fairly significant number of furnaces of a different type were found, intended for firing amphorae and dating back to the VIII-IX centuries. ( Yakobson A.L. Ceramics and ceramic production ... pp. 39-56.) They are rectangular, have two longitudinal combustion ducts and a bottom with round vents. The furnace is known, apparently, X century. in Madara (Bulgaria). ( Rashenov A. Peshch for clay products in Madara // Madara: Digging and teaching. Sofia, 1936. Book. 2.P. 25.) It is cut into the ground, rectangular with transverse bridges, through which two parallel furnace channels covered with arches pass. The kiln underneath here is composed of horizontally placed bricks.
Furnaces, similar in design, were widespread in the territory that was part of the Golden Horde. Thus, a brick kiln, which functioned at the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries, was excavated in the ancient Saraichik. ( Patsevich G.I. Brick kiln in the ancient city of Saraichik // KSIIMK. 1957. Iss. 69.S. 111.) Here, the transverse walls were so close to one another that their upper surface could serve as the bottom of the firing chamber. A rectangular oven of the XIV century, measuring 3.0 x 2.5 m, was opened in Bolgar. ( Khovanskaya O.S. Pottery of the city of Bolgar // MIA. 1954. No. 42. P. 366.) She, apparently, had a bottom of horizontally lying bricks, resting on the transverse walls. Two furnaces, representing a single industrial complex and dating back to the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries, were discovered in medieval Belgorod. ( Kravchenko A.A. Industrial complexes of Belgorod XIII-XIV centuries // Antique Tyra and medieval Belgorod. Kiev, 1979, p. 115.) They are built into the remains of antique residential buildings. Their walls are made of raw materials on clay mortar, and the space between the walls and stone walls of ancient buildings is filled with earth for thermal insulation. The furnaces are rectangular, measuring 2.7 x 2.6 and 3.1 x 2.7 m. The furnace channel, covered with arches, runs along the furnace. Under the burning chamber is lined with clay slabs and has round vents. In the end wall of the burning chamber, a loading passage opening (65 cm wide) has been preserved; through this passage, the furnace was loaded with products and removed after firing. According to the researchers, the kilns were used for firing bricks, tiles, pipes and other building materials. A larger rectangular kiln (4.5 x 3.0 m), with six transverse walls, was excavated in Old Orhei. ( Polevoy L.L. Urban pottery of the Prut-Dniester region in the XIV century. Chisinau, 1969, p. 87.) A furnace channel covered with wide arches also passed through the transverse walls along the furnace. There is no information about how the upper chamber (burning chamber) was arranged. The kiln was used for firing bricks and belongs to the XIV century. In the same place, slightly smaller ovens for burning dishes were found, which had a round shape (up to 1.6 m in diameter) and only two transverse walls. Remains of a kiln for the burning of building ceramics (including, apparently, bricks) dating back to the 9th-10th centuries, were excavated in the monastery complex near the Great Basilica in Pliska. ( Vitlyanov S. Zastopanskii image of the manastir at the Golyamata basilica in Pliska // Archeology (Sofia). 1984. No. 2-3. S. 97-99.) The stove is square, with rounded corners, made of bricks and stones; the size of the sides is about 3.5 m. The bases of the longitudinal and transverse walls have been preserved.
Furnaces specially designed for firing bricks have been studied in significant numbers in Central Asia. Stoves dating back to the XI-XII and XIII-XV centuries are known here. ( Pruger E.B. Brick-burning production of medieval Merv // TYUTAKE. 1969.Vol. 14.P. 230-239.) These furnaces are rectangular, with five to seven transverse walls inside and one furnace channel passing through them, covered with arches. The size of the furnaces is usually about 3 m. The bottom of the burning chamber was the upper horizontal planes of the transverse walls.
A review of brick kilns and large pottery kilns, approximately synchronous with ancient Russian kilns and located on the territory of Crimea, Bulgaria, the Golden Horde possessions and Central Asia, shows that these kilns are direct analogies to the kilns of Ancient Rus. Thus, brick kilns that were almost identical in design were used in the 10th-15th centuries. in the extremely vast territory of South-Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Researchers have already noted that this type of origin is associated with late antique traditions. ( Yakobson A.L. Ceramics and ceramic production ... p. 57.) It turns out that the location of the ovens on a flat platform or on a slope is not a fundamental difference, but is related to local conditions. If there was an opportunity to cut the furnace into a clay slope, this, of course, increased its thermal performance and reduced the cost of construction. But if there was no such slope nearby, the furnace was built on a plane, significantly increasing the thickness of the outer walls, or filling the space around the walls with stones and filling it with earth. The shape of the furnace is not a fundamental difference either - rectangular or round, since the same shape of the furnace is known, both of the one and the other, and sometimes even intermediate ones - approaching a rectangle with rounded corners. A more significant difference is the presence or absence of a special hearth with round vents. In those furnaces that were undoubtedly specially built for firing bricks, and not amphorae or other utensils, the upper surfaces of the walls or bricks lying horizontally on these walls served as a hearth. Furnaces with round vents passing through a vaulted hearth were mostly intended for burning vessels, not Kirichi. It is very possible that such a division was not unconditional and the bricks were fired in kilns of both types. But still, from this point of view, the furnaces excavated in Kiev near the Tithe Church, like those in Chernigov, on Mlynovische, are close in design to the furnaces for burning large vessels.
Wherever possible, furnaces were built close to the construction site. This is how the ovens were installed in ancient Smolensk. However, not all cities were able to organize the molding and firing of bricks on or near the construction site. Therefore, in Chernihiv, the furnaces are located somewhat at a distance, outside the city. In Suzdal, the stove is also outside the detinets, but at the outlets of good clay. Exploration, carried out in 1976 in Polotsk, showed that here, judging by the finds of unused and unburned bricks, the area of \u200b\u200bbrick-burning production was located opposite the Detinets, on the right bank of the Dvina - in the area of \u200b\u200bYakimansky Posad. In Ryazan, furnaces are located near the village. Shatrishche - 2 km up the Oka from the ancient city. It is noteworthy that where the stoves were located far from the construction site, they are located so that the brick could be transported by water.
Among the ancient Russian brick kilns studied by the excavations, two Smolensk ones are the best preserved ones. However, even they do not provide all the necessary information for the reconstruction of the firing process. Nevertheless, an analysis of the design of these furnaces is combined with a few late medieval written sources, as well as ethnographic materials about the artisanal baking of bricks in the 19th century. allows you to understand the main features of the operation of such furnaces.
First of all, it is obvious that with a long combustion channel and relatively high bridges, long-flame fuel should have been used, i.e. ordinary firewood. By the way, wood fuel up to the beginning of the XX century. continued to be considered the best for these purposes. ( Weber K.K. Decree. op. P. 214; Yagodin V.G. Decree. op. P. 50; P.D. Gonchar Decree. op. P. 36.) Heat (i.e. hot gases) spread through the main combustion channel and through the transverse channels between the bridges, creating the temperature required for firing.
Since, unlike the Suzdal furnace in Smolensk, there is no special hearth above the lintels, it is obvious that the upper planes of the lintels themselves served as the hearth of the furnace. The spaces between the lintels were no more than 20 cm wide; therefore, if the mud bricks were placed on the edge across these channels, then they should not have failed. Nevertheless, apparently, the lower row of fired bricks was also wedged so that they would better hold and would not fall into the channels between the bridges. Such wedged bricks, poking upward in the channels, were found during the clearing of both Smolensk furnaces. This bottom row of bricks created a grate on which the products to be fired were laid. (Such a grate was, for example, revealed in a furnace of the end of the 18th century, uncovered by excavations in the Kostroma region ( Kuznetsova M.Yu. Excavation of a brick kiln in the village. Selishche // AO 1975, M, 1976.P. 71.) Probably, for better firing, the rows of fired raw materials were placed on the edge, and bricks of one row were placed perpendicular to the bricks of the neighboring one or “in the tree”. A stack of bricks found in the furnace channel in 1973, which clearly fell into this channel when the bridges were deformed, testifies to a certain order of laying. Here all the bricks were poking upwards: one brick across the channel, several parallel bricks along it, then again one brick across. It is very possible that the rows of adobe, standing on the edge, alternated with rows lying flat. (So, for example, judging by the remains of products found, the raw materials were placed in the oven serving the construction of the Tithe Church ( New in the archeology of Kiev. P. 336). Raw materials for roasting were also laid in the 19th century. Poltava potters ( Zaretsky N.A. Pottery in the Poltava province. Poltava, 1894, p. 68)
Roasting was a rather complicated process, in which a not very high temperature was first created in the furnace, and then it was raised to 800-950 °. After the firing was completed, they waited for the furnace to cool down, which took at least a week. ( In the Life of Euphrosnya of Polotsk, a miracle is described, thanks to which bricks were obtained for the completion of the construction of the temple: "... the cave is full of burnt piles of burnt, and already cold, strong zelo". It was specially noted here that the bricks were already cooled down, i.e. immediately suitable for construction (Demetrius. The Book of the Lives of the Saints. May. 23 May. Kiev, 1700) The entire cycle of the furnace - from loading to unloading products - in the XIX century. lasted about two to three weeks. Krupskiy A.K. Brick production. P. 142; Semenov M.I. Decree. op. P. 73; Yagodin V.G. Decree. op. S. 60.)
When the oven is in operation, hot gases must escape into the upper opening. This hole had to be large enough so that it was possible to load and unload products through it. (In a rectangular kiln at the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries, excavated in Belgorod, there was a special hole in the end wall for loading. This passage had no traces of firing; apparently, after loading, the hole was covered with clay ( Kravchenko A.A. Decree. op. P. 121) It is very possible that the oven did not have a vaulted top at all, and its walls were raised to a height corresponding to the height of the rows of loaded products, i.e. no more than 3 m above the level of the upper platform of the jumpers. Even in the 19th century. in handicraft production, they preferred to build furnaces with an open top, without a vault. ( Weber K.K. Decree. op. P. 229.) In this case, the bricks of two or three upper rows were laid flat close, so that they served as a kind of roof over the rest of the products. These bricks were usually covered with a thin layer of sand or slag. A wooden canopy was placed over the stove to protect it from rain. ( Stoves under a wooden canopy are clearly visible, for example, in the drawing by S. Remezov, at the turn of the 17th-18th centuries. (see: Goldenberg L.A. Semyon Ulyanovich Remezov. M., 1965. Fig. after p. 56). Similar furnaces were used in Western European medieval building practice ( Atszynski M. Technika i organizacja budownictwa ceglanego w Prusach w koncu XIV i w pierwszej polowie XV w. // Studia z dziejov rzemiosla i przemyslu. Wroclaw 1970 T. 9.S. 65)
Reconstruction, at least in the most general terms, of the process of functioning of the Smolensk brick kilns allows us to make an approximate calculation of their productivity. As you know, when installing bricks on the edge, there are free spaces between them so that hot gases can cover the raw material from all sides, therefore, about 400-500 pieces could be placed in one row in the furnace. Height in brick kilns of the 19th century it was recommended to lay no more than 25 rows of raw materials, and for the most part - much less, only 16-18 rows. Thin bricks of the 12th century (plinth) yielded much more easily to deformation, and there is no doubt that these bricks could not be laid in many rows, like block bricks. If we assume that the furnace was loaded with plinth to a height of 10 rows, it turns out that in the Smolensk furnace it was possible to simultaneously burn up to 4-5 thousand bricks. The season of operation of brick kilns could last a little longer than the season of molding raw materials - up to 150 working days. (Weber K.K., op. Cit. P. 132.) Considering that the kiln cycle was about 2.5 weeks, it can be assumed that each kiln was used 8-10 times per season and could thus give up to 50 thous. bricks. The number of bricks required for the construction of a sufficiently large church (for example, the cathedral on the Protok in Smolensk) is slightly less than 1 million pieces. And since a lot of scrap was obtained during firing, the approximate amount can be considered 1200 thousand pieces. (According to the norms of Russian handicraft production of the 19th century, when making and firing bricks, then 20% of marriage was allowed ( Rochefor N.I. Decree. op. P. 295). According to information from 1847, out of 100 thousand pieces of raw materials, 80 thousand suitable bricks ( Konorov A.V. Decree. op. P. 209). Polish researchers believe that when firing bricks of Gothic buildings, the marriage was about 1/6 ( see, for example: Wyrobisz A. Op. cit. S. 79). When firing plinths, the percentage of rejects should have been even higher.) Therefore, in order to ensure the construction of a temple of an average size, at least 10 furnaces of the same type as excavated in Smolensk had to work simultaneously for two seasons. The Suzdal furnace is slightly smaller in area than the Smolensk ones, and, therefore, its productivity should also be slightly lower. (However, according to A.D. Varganov's data, in the Suzdal oven, about 5 thousand pieces of raw materials could also be fired simultaneously ( see: A.D. Varganov. Decree. op. S. 50)
Signs on bricks. Many Dnevner Russian plinth bricks have signs. Their classification was proposed by I.M. Hozerov. ( Khozerov I.M. Signs and hallmarks of bricks of the Smolensk architectural monuments of the most ancient period // Scientific. Izv. Smolen, state un-that. 1929.Vol. 5, no. 3.P. 167.) According to his terminology, all convex images (both on the ends and on the bed side of bricks) are called signs, and images pressed in with a stamp are called stamps. In addition to this classification, L. A. Belyaev proposed to introduce the term "marks" to denote signs drawn by a finger or some instrument on the bedside side of a brick before firing it. ( Belyaev L.A. From the history of ancient Russian construction craft // Problems of the history of the USSR. M., 1973.S. 439. Belenitsky proposed a different terminology: a sign - an image made with a finger or an instrument; stamp - stamp imprint; graffiti - an image made after firing (see: Belenitsky V.L. Brands and signs on bricks of the 12th century from the church of Dmitry Solunsky in Pskov // SA. 1971. No. 2. P. 272, note 2). This terminology is less convenient than the one proposed by I.M. Khozerov, since almost all the images found on Old Russian bricks (both convex and depressed), in this case, fall under one concept - stamps.) All these signs are different not only in design and technique, but also in the breadth of distribution in various building centers of Russia. Moreover, as it turned out, they are also different in purpose.
The most widely used signs were on the ends of bricks ( fig. 15, 16). They were used in Chernigov, Ryazan, Smolensk, Polotsk, Grodno architecture. A large number of such signs recorded during the study of numerous monuments, both preserved and excavated, attracted increased attention of researchers. Such marks were considered as signs of property, as personal marks of masters, and finally, as marks of customers. However, a comparison of the signs with the process of making bricks led to the conclusion that in reality these signs are production signs. They marked the top brick of each pile of raw materials ("banquet") in order to determine the day of forming the pile or the batch intended for simultaneous firing in the oven. ( Rappoport P.A. Signs on the plinth // KSIA. 1977. Issue. 150.S. 28.)
Signs on the ends of bricks in the overwhelming majority of cases are on the short end, although they are also found on the long end. It was noted (very rarely) the presence of such bricks on which the signs are located on two ends: opposite short ones or on a long and short one. All signs are convex, without being pressed into the brick dough, and certainly made with an imprint of a wooden form - a matrix. If the matrix was cut out on the wall of the frame itself, then there is no doubt that the frame had to be detachable, since otherwise the sign would be smeared when knocking out the raw material from it. The wall with the cut out mark could be removable, that is, it could be inserted into the frame only when the brick with the mark was formed. However, the clarity of the molding of the plinth with a large area of \u200b\u200btheir bedded surface and low thickness makes one think that the frame could not be detachable, but rigid, connected at the corners in a spike or lock. Under this condition, the possibility of placing the sign matrix on the frame wall is excluded. In this case, we have to assume that a separate bar with a matrix cut out on it was put into the frame. When knocking out the raw, the bar fell out with it, ensuring the safety of the convex sign. After use, the plank was probably cleaned or even washed, so that the next time it was filled with clay, it again gave a clear impression. The size of bricks with signs, as far as you can see, does not differ from the sizes of bricks without them. Therefore, if the sign was cut on a separate bar, then the forms for bricks with signs were made specially longer by the thickness of the bar than provided equal value them and ordinary bricks.
There are bricks on which the same sign, unconditionally imprinted by one matrix, is found both in a straight and inverted position. This can be explained by the overturning of the bar with the matrix or the frame itself, which had no bottom. According to I.M. Khozerov, bricks were used in masonry, as a rule, in a position opposite to that in which they were formed, i.e. bottom side up. Based on this, Khozerov proposed to depict the signs during publication as they were located in the masonry, and not as they were formed. However, apparently, it is more expedient to bring the images of all signs in the position that they had during molding. In this case, it is necessary to give an image not only of the sign itself, as Khozerov did (and all researchers before him), but also of the entire end of the brick, since not only their drawing, but also the position they occupy on the end is important to determine the identity of signs. As for the exact pattern of the signs, it just can vary somewhat even if the signs were imprinted from one matrix, because after the matrix was formed, it was necessary to clean it from adhering clay and this was not always done equally carefully. As a result, signs were obtained that coincided in design and dimensions, but had different line thicknesses and a different degree of print clarity.
The percentage of bricks with marks on the ends is unclear. In no case was it possible to make accurate statistical calculations of the ratio of the number of bricks with and without signs. It is possible that it was different in different monuments. An approximate calculation of the number of signs can be made on the preserved sections of the walls of the excavated buildings. Thus, in the Cathedral of the Trinity Monastery on Klovka in Smolensk, 9 signs for 200 bricks were recorded on the inner surface of the northern wall of the northern vestibule. Considering that the signs did not play any role in the masonry and the bricks were equally often laid with signs both on the facade and inside the masonry, it can be assumed that about the same number of signs are here on the side of the bricks that is invisible from the outside. In addition, bricks with the long side facing the facade should be excluded from the count, because in Smolensk, signs are found in the overwhelming majority of cases on the short side. As a result, it turns out that with such a calculation, the signs should have been located on about 18 bricks out of 150 - 12%. In the masonry of the apse of the same temple, a similar calculation reveals a slightly smaller number of bricks with signs - only 8%. A special dismantling of a small fallen block of masonry at the southwestern corner of the cathedral on the Protok in Smolensk yielded 17% of bricks with signs (5 plinths out of 30).
The number of characters imprinted from one matrix is \u200b\u200balso unknown. About 40 identical marks have been registered. In reality, there were probably much more of them. It is noted that the same signs are more often found on the same section of the building. Apparently, this is due to the fact that on this site of the construction, one batch of bricks was used, marked with the same signs. So, in the Smolensk Cathedral on the Protok there are signs that were mainly found in the masonry of the southern chapel, others - in the masonry of the northern, others - in the southern part of the western wall of the gallery, etc. In the Church of Peter and Paul in the wall of the stairs leading to the choir , one of the signs is fixed 17 times.
On the ends of the bricks, there are both very simple signs (for example, one dash) and rather complex ones in design. In the lower part of the buildings, usually more simple signs were used, and higher - more complex ones. Obviously, as the bricks were made, the signs gradually became more complex in order to avoid their repetition.
Figure: 19. Sign on the bed side of the brick. Polotsk. Church on the Moat
Among the signs on the ends there are "princely" ones - probably the personal signs of the prince-customer ( fig. 17). They are found in small numbers, apparently only from one drawing in the monument. It is possible that such a sign was used to mark a batch of raw materials associated with a certain day or event (the birthday of the prince or something like that). There are also signs in the form of letters, sometimes several together. In one case, in the Assumption Cathedral of Old Ryazan, a sign was found in the form of an inscription in a mirror image - "Yakov tv ..." (probably "worked"). ( Mongayt A.L. Old Ryazan. M., 1955.S. 88.) Apparently, this is the name of the master molder. The work of the master in kneading clay and molding raw materials was obviously defined by the term “create”. ( See: V. Dal Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language. SPb., 1882. T. 4. S. 405 (to create - "dissolve or dilute in a slurry, knead or knead").
It should be noted that in almost all monuments one can see signs that are very similar in design, but differ in small details, size or location on the brick, which indicates that they were imprinted from different matrices. We, naturally, should consider such signs as different variants. At the same time, their proximity gives reason to believe that the masters, when carving images on the wooden wall of the frame, had one drawing in mind. It is not always easy to determine when it was conceived to make the same sign, and when they are different, although similar. Therefore, if the number of variants of signs (i.e., signs imprinted from different matrices) found during excavations can be calculated quite accurately, then the number of different drawings is mostly determined approximately.
The total number of different signs used when molding the bricks of one building was quite significant. Of course, in no case do we know their true number, since in excavations it is possible to study only the lower parts of the brickwork, and in the surviving buildings such a calculation is all the more impossible. The largest number of variants of signs is noted in the cathedral on the Protok in Smolensk - there are 214 of them, if we take the images imprinted from different matrices for different signs, even if the drawing coincides. If signs similar in design, imprinted from different matrices, are counted as one, then the total number of signs found in this temple will be about 130. Since only the lower parts of the walls and pillars have survived from the building of the cathedral, it can be assumed that in the whole structure at least 200 characters of different design were used.
The Cathedral on the Protoka is one of the largest monuments of ancient Smolensk architecture; in most sites, the volume of brickwork was less, and therefore the number of signs was also somewhat less. It can be assumed that the total number of different signs on the ends of the bricks used in each individual monument of Russian architecture in the 12th century was approximately 100-200, and sometimes, perhaps, somewhat more.
In some cases, it is possible to note not only the closeness of the pattern of signs on the bricks of various monuments, but also their direct coincidence, i.e. impression from one matrix. It is clear that we are talking about characters that are quite complex in design, since the coincidence of simple characters can be accidental. The presence in different monuments of signs imprinted from the same matrix could take place only if, after the completion of the construction of one building, when setting up the production of bricks for the next building, they used the preserved plaques with signs carved on them. Naturally, such preservation of matrices presupposes the work of one and the same master-molder and, therefore, indicates the chronological proximity of these monuments.
The marks on the bed side of the bricks have a completely different character. They are usually quite large, often complex in design, convex, embossed in a wooden shape, and in some cases even imprints of wood fibers of this shape can be seen on the bricks. All signs are on the underside of the bricks, i.e. on the one that, when forming, is located on the backing board. Obviously, the matrix was cut on this one; chalkboard. On the other hand, in masonry, such signs are almost always on the upper side of the bricks. All marks were found in random places of masonry and were covered with mortar, i.e. played no role in the construction of the building. Such signs are known only in several monuments of ancient Russian architecture. So, their presence is noted on the bricks of the Tithe Church in Kiev, the Savior Church-tomb in Pereyaslavl, the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir-Volynsky, the Church on the Moat in Polotsk, the Church of Dmitry Solunsky in Pskov and the Church of the Annunciation in Vitebsk. In Smolensk, marks on the bedded side of the bricks were found in the Borisoglebsk Cathedral of the Smyadyn Monastery, the Church of Peter and Paul, on bricks found during excavations near the eastern side of the modern cathedral, i.e. originating, apparently, from that part of the Cathedral of Monomakh, which was completed under Prince Rostislav. Thus, except for the Tithe Church (late 10th century) and the Savior Church in Pereyaslavl (late 11th - early 12th century), all other signs refer to monuments erected in the first half and middle of the 12th century.
In terms of content, these are mostly princely signs, different in all monuments, i.e., apparently, the personal sign of the prince-customer ( fig. 18, 19). (Rappoport P.A. Construction artels of Ancient Rus and their customers // SA. 1985. No. 4. P. 87.) In addition to the princely, there are other signs on the bricks. On the bricks of the Church of the Tithes, there are signs in the form of Greek inscriptions, unfortunately not readable due to their fragmentation. The inscription is also on the brick from the Church of the Savior in Pereyaslavl.
Convex signs on the bedside side of bricks are known not only in Russian, but also in Byzantine architecture, where they were used at least from the 4th century. ( Mango S.A. Bizantine brick stamps // Amer. Journ. Archeology. 1950. Vol. 54. P. 19.) Among them there are names, monograms, inscriptions. Most researchers of Byzantine architecture believe that these are mainly signs of customers or donors. Signs, obviously, also played some kind of counting role, since there are only about 1% of bricks. Thus, the bricks of the Church of the Tithes testify to the continuation of the Byzantine tradition in Russia to place a convex sign on the bedded side with the name (or, in this case, with the generic sign) of the suzerain. Obviously, a similar pattern was observed in some cases and later, until the middle of the 12th century.
Figure: 20 Brick with a stamp. Smolensk. Church on Bolshaya Krasnoflotskaya street | Figure: 22. Brands. Cathedral of the Spassky Monastery in Novgorod-Seversky |
Figure: 21. Brick with stamps. Smolensk. Cathedral on the channel | Figure: 23. Marks on bricks. Chernigov. Borisoglebskaya church. According to N.V. Holostenko |
The third type of images found on ancient Russian bricks is stamps ( fig. 20). They are registered on the bricks of a number of monuments in the Smolensk and Polotsk lands. In Smolensk, hallmarks are only found in monuments dating back to the 40s to 70s. XII century; in later buildings, as a rule, there are no hallmarks. As a single exception, one stamp was found on the brick of the church on Bolshaya Krasnoflotskaya Street and one in the cathedral on Protok. In the same cathedral on Protoka, several bricks were found, the bedded side of which was entirely covered with a pattern made from stamps ( fig. 21). In Polotsk, the hallmarks are known in the Great Cathedral of the Belchitsk Monastery, and one brand was found on the brick of the tower. There are also stamps on the bricks of the Church of the Annunciation in Vitebsk. In addition to these monuments, stamps were found on the bricks of the Spassky Cathedral in Novgorod-Seversky ( fig. 22).
Many hallmarks of the same design were found in several copies - one imprint on a brick. But there are also bricks on which a number of identical brands are placed, usually located haphazardly. For example, in the Smolensk pillarless church in Detinets and in the Borisoglebsk cathedral of the Smyadyn monastery, one can find both one imprint of some stamps on the brick, and a greater number of them - up to 10. On the brick of the same pillarless church, one stamp was repeated 5 times and another stamp was imprinted twice.
Brands are always located on the upper bedding side of the brick. They do not have a definite fixed position on the surface: completely identical marks on different bricks are usually located in different places - mainly in the middle part of the brick, but sometimes close to the edge. In the same way, the depth of the marks varies, even those that are completely identical in design. Finally, some of the hallmarks are pressed into the brick with a slight slope, i.e. their bottom is not parallel to the plane of the brick bed. All these circumstances indicate that the stamps were applied to the raw material by imprint with a stamp, which was pressed into the brick by hand. There is no doubt that the impression was made after the clay was cut from the top surface of the brick. The punching tool, obviously, was a stick (probably made of horn) with a specially processed end. Brands, as a rule, have a small diameter - from 1.3 to 3.5 cm. They are mostly round or oval, although there are also more complex shapes.
There are cases when hallmarks, imprinted with one stamp, were found on bricks of different monuments. So, for example, two hallmarks from a pillarless church are certainly identical to the hallmarks of a tower built at the same time as this church.
THEM. Khozerov gives examples when in Smolensk, patterns of stamps were placed on the sides of curved bricks intended for laying out arcatures. ( Khozerov I.M. Decree. op. P. 178, 179.) Thus, the stamp for imprinting stamps could, apparently, sometimes be used to apply decorative motifs to bricks. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the main purpose of the stamps is still different, not decorative. The stamps located on the bedding side of the bricks were visible only when the bricks had not yet been used in masonry. Only a few assumptions can be made about the purpose of the marks. Most likely, certain lots of bricks were marked with stamps. The relatively small number of marks, much less than the number of marks on the ends, indicates that these parties were quite large. Perhaps this is how the number of bricks required for the entire load of the furnace or some part of it was noted. Or maybe a certain number of bricks were simply marked with a stamp, and this was a mark of the count of the raw materials made, i.e. control of the amount of harvested products.
Another type of signs is labels, i.e. signs, execution with some instrument and even just a finger on the bedside side of the brick. They were in use in Chernigov and partly in Kiev (Assumption Cathedral of the Pechersky Monastery). According to the drawing, the marks are quite simple: they are stripes, crosses, sometimes letter-like images, and sometimes images reminiscent of princely signs (Fig. 23). Marks are also found on bricks with marks on the end. Thus, marks and end marks could not replace each other; it is obvious that their functions are not identical. The number of bricks with marks is usually significantly less than bricks with marks on the end. In the Chernigov Borisoglebsk Cathedral, where the marks are especially numerous, it was noted that curved bricks of the same type for the most part have the same type of marks. In the same monument, an observation was made that the same type of marks are often concentrated on one section of the building. It is very likely that the labels played the role of counting signs, i.e. performed the same function as the stamps.
Finally, there is another type of signs, known from the bricks of two building centers of Russia - Pereyaslavl and Vladimir-Volynsky: parallel stripes applied to the bedded side of the brick with some kind of comb-type tool. These stripes, as a rule, have wavy outlines, much less often - rectilinear ( fig. 24). Often stripes - "combs" cover the entire surface of the brick (solid corrugation); they are always directed along its long side. Usually, "combs" are very diverse both in the distance between the lines and in the "step" of the waves. Instances with such "combs" make up about 5% of the total number of bricks in the building. It is very possible that this type of signs is a production one and coincides with the signs on the ends, which were not used in Pereyaslavl and Volyn. In addition to Pereyaslavl and Volyn, "combs" were also found on the bricks of the Assumption Church in Podil, Kiev. (Similar "combs" are found on ancient Roman bricks ( Rupp E. Bautechnik im Altertum. Munchen, 1964. Taf. 103)
Sometimes on the bedded side of the bricks, there are drawings scratched with a stick on wet clay. The episodic nature of the appearance of such drawings indicates that they did not play any role in the process of making bricks or in construction. These are the fruits of the amateur creativity of "plinth philanthropists", which are of interest not from the production and construction side, but only as examples of folk art ( fig. 25).
Assortment of bricks. The range of bricks from ancient Russian monuments, i.e. the set of types and shapes of bricks, as well as the percentage of types, are extremely poorly studied. It is difficult to do this in the surviving monuments, because it is far from always possible to measure the bricks in the masonry. In those cases, when they were opened by excavations, the set of types of bricks and their percentage does not always correspond to what took place in the whole building before its destruction. Often in the process of clearing the territory, the remnants of the collapsed upper parts of the building were taken away somewhere. Therefore, in excavations, sometimes some types of bricks, which were used mainly in the upper parts of the structure, may not be found at all, not to mention the fact that the quantitative ratio of different types of bricks found may be completely random.
As far as can be judged from the available fragmentary data, the set of bricks of the Church of the Tithes consisted mainly of rectangular specimens. The most common size was 30 x 35 cm with a thickness of 2.5 cm, but there were both narrower bricks (24 x 35 cm) and square (31 x 31 cm). Narrow "halves" bricks, 15-16 cm wide, were also used. In addition, bricks with semicircular and triangular ends, as well as slightly trapezoidal, were found in small quantities.
The most detailed assortment of bricks was studied during the dismantling of the ruins of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev-Pechersky Monastery. ( Kholostenko M.V. Dormition Cathedral of the Pechersk Monastery // Old Kiev. Kiev, 1975.S. 117.) There were collected about 2,800 complete copies belonging to nine different types... Of course, there is no complete certainty that all these bricks belonged to the original building of the cathedral, and not to the areas of its repairs and rebuilding, but nevertheless, an analysis of the material obtained gives grounds to judge the assortment of the cathedral's bricks. The size of the bricks fluctuated over a very wide range. Thus, wide rectangular specimens, which make up about 80% of all found, have dimensions from 27 x 28 to 35 x 40 cm. However, about 70% of these rectangular bricks, i.e. more than 55% of all measured bricks of the cathedral have a size that fluctuates very slightly: 21 x 29 x 34-36 cm.About 10% of all bricks belong to another version of rectangular - narrow, with a width of 15 to 19 cm.Slightly more than 2% of bricks represent a very special type that is not found in other monuments of Russian architecture - narrow bricks with an extended semicircular end. All other types make up a very insignificant percentage - each type is no more than 1.5% of all bricks found.
A different assortment of bricks in the Chernigov Borisoglebsk Cathedral. ( Kholostenko M.B. Studies of the Borisoglebsk Cathedral in Chernigov // SA. 1967. No. 2. P. 192.) Here, along with rectangular bricks (of normal width and narrow), there are narrow ones with a semicircular end, trapezoidal ones with a slightly rounded side and segmental ones with a cut off top, used for laying out half-columns on facades. In addition, there are several types of curved bricks in this monument - a complete set required for making an arcature belt. The range of bricks of the Kiev St. Cyril Church is very close ( fig. 26).
Analysis of the range of bricks of Smolensk architectural monuments of the XII century. showed that here in all monuments ordinary rectangular bricks make up at least 70% of the total, in addition, up to 20% of bricks are represented by narrow rectangular specimens and only about 10% are curved bricks of various types.
The range of bricks of Smolensk monuments has changed very significantly along with the change in architectural forms in the 80s. XII century. Before that, the set included bricks, from which powerful semi-columns were laid out on the facades; they were in the form of a segment with a truncated top ( fig. 27). Since the 90s. XII century. such bricks were no longer used, but bricks with a semicircular end appeared in a fairly significant number, which served to lay out thin semi-columns on beam pilasters ( fig. 28). However, the correct semicircular shape in such bricks is found only in rare cases, usually the bricks have a strongly flattened rounded end ( fig. 29). Most of these bricks in width correspond not to the main, but to the narrow type of rectangular bricks of this building, although in some buildings wide bricks with a flat-rounded end were also widely used. Together with bricks for semi-columns, bricks of the usual size were often used, but with one rounded corner, i.e. in the form of a quarter circle. Trapezoidal bricks are found in relatively small numbers in the excavations, which were apparently used mainly for laying out door frames and window openings. For the arrangement of ornamental belts of the curb and denticles, ironing bricks were used - narrow, with a wedge-shaped end. Usually they were molded completely independently, as evidenced by a similar brick of the cathedral on the Protok in Smolensk, which had a convex zigzag sign on the long side. But sometimes, judging by the finds in the ruins of the church at the Okopnoye cemetery in Smolensk, such bricks were made in the form of a raw plate with cutting it for breaking into three or four iron bricks. In a very small amount, there are also arcuate curved bricks, which apparently served for laying arcature belts to the edge.
The range of bricks in the monuments of Novgorod architecture is much less diverse. Here, in essence, only rectangular bricks were used. At the same time, a small part of the bricks had a much smaller width than ordinary bricks of the same monument, i.e. represented "halves". In very small numbers, there are also narrow bricks with a triangular end, which were used for laying teeth. An exception among the Novgorod monuments is the Pyatnitskaya church, the set of bricks of which is much more diverse and corresponds to the range of not Novgorod, but Smolensk churches.
Figure: 28. A set of bricks for the church on Voskresenskaya Hill in Smolensk | Figure: 29. A set of bricks for the Cathedral of the Spassky Monastery in Novgorod-Seversky |
Figure: 30. Laying of pilasters. Smolensk. Church on Malaya Rachevka |
In the monuments of architecture of ancient Pereyaslavl, all bricks were rectangular, and the overwhelming majority had a normal width, and some were narrow bricks. The only exception is a civil building (probably a bathhouse), where various curved bricks were found. The range of bricks of the Kiev and Chernigov monuments of the late XII - early XIII centuries is extremely diverse. ( fig. thirty).
Careful measurement of a significant number of bricks in each monument makes it possible to discard random deviations and establish what were the main dimensions of the bricks used in the masonry. At the same time, as a rule, it turns out that one standard covers the overwhelming majority of all bricks (at least 60-70%) and is, therefore, the leading, basic size for a given building. This basic size is usually determined with an accuracy of no more than 2 cm, since it should be borne in mind that an imperfect molding and firing system gave precisely such fluctuations in size, not to mention more significant random deviations. ( In order to determine the basic brick format of the monument under study, it is necessary to measure a significant number of bricks. Then, based on these data, a graph is built that reveals the main format and its deviations (for more details see: Rappoport P.A. Method of dating monuments of ancient Smolensk architecture according to the brick format // SA. 1976. No. 2. P. 83). Unfortunately, until very recently, most researchers did not build such graphs and did not use statistical data on the percentage of different options for brick sizes. Therefore, the formats of bricks presented in publications are often inaccurate, and sometimes even simply incorrect.)
Comparison of the basic dimensions of bricks of different monuments shows that there is a certain pattern here: the younger the monument, the smaller its bricks. The reasons for the gradual and very uniform reduction in the size of the bricks are undoubtedly associated with a certain system of forming and firing. Until now, these reasons have not yet been fully clarified. (It is very likely that, when starting the construction of the building, the craftsmen took as a sample the format of the fired plinths used by them on the previous object. consequently, the fired plinths were also slightly smaller.) The systematic reduction in the size of Old Russian bricks makes it possible to determine the construction time of the structure by the format of the bricks. So, the bricks of the buildings of the XI century. have, as a rule, a length of 34 to 38 cm. a width of 27 to 31 cm. In the monuments of the XII century. the bricks are smaller: length from 29 to 36 cm, width from 20 to 26 cm. Finally, in the monuments of the end of the XII-first third of the XIII century. the length of the bricks is from 24 to 29 cm, the width is from 17 to 21 cm. The thickness of bricks in ancient Russian monuments ranges from 2.5 to 5 cm, and it is difficult to trace a certain pattern in the change in thickness.
Of course, the transfer of brick molding to the hands of another construction artel, perhaps even a change of master could introduce noticeable fluctuations in the change in their size that did not correspond to chronological evolution. And yet, in most cases, on the basis of measuring bricks of dated buildings, it is possible to create a scale of resizing, which makes it possible to determine with sufficient accuracy the time of construction of undated monuments. ( Rappoport P. A. 1) Method of dating the monuments of ancient Smolensk architecture according to the brick format. P. 83; 2) Archaeological research of the monuments of Novgorod architecture // Novgorod historical collection. L., 1982. No. 1 (11). S. 197; Demicheva N.N. Study of the monuments of Novgorod architecture of the XII-early XIII centuries. according to the data on the evolution of the brick format // SA.1984. # 1. P. 220.) These scales are different for different ancient Russian construction centers. It should be noted that in some construction centers the evolution of brick sizes was more uniform, in others less. But in general, in the monuments of architecture throughout the territory of Ancient Russia, the change in the size of the bricks was quite uniform.
In the scientific literature, it has been suggested that, along with the plinth in Russia, already in the XII-XIII centuries. a block brick was also made, which was used together with a plinth. In fact, Romanesque block bricks first entered Kiev from Poland in the very last pre-Mongol years. Squared bricks together with plinths were used only in those cases when buildings built earlier were repaired with them. ( Rappoport P.A. About the time of the appearance of block bricks in Russia // SA. 1989. No. 4. P. 210.) Examples include the Assumption Cathedral of the Pechersky Monastery, the Kiev Rotunda, the Cathedral of Michael in Pereyaslavl, rebuilt shortly after they suffered. And during the earthquake of 1230, in addition, plinths of a narrow format were sometimes mistaken for block bricks, i.e. "Halves", especially if they were unusually thick (for example, in the Novgorod Cathedral of the Antoniev Monastery and the Old Ladoga Cathedral of the Nikolsky Monastery - more than 7 cm).
Of course, the study of brick production in Ancient Rus is just making its first steps. With the further development of this issue, more essential data will undoubtedly be obtained both for the history of Old Russian construction technology and for Old Russian architecture.
The maximum number of different designs of signs on the bedded side of bricks recorded in one monument is four (in the Borisoglebsk cathedral of the Smyadyn monastery). Almost all signs are found not in one, but in several copies. The total number of bricks with similar marks is very small, apparently no more than 1-2% of the total number of bricks in the monument. P.A.Rappoport. Construction production of Ancient Rus (X-XIII centuries).
P.A.Rappoport.Construction production of Ancient Rus (X-XIII centuries).
My jubilee, hundredth article on the site is dedicated to one of the oldest building products -. Clay brick as a material for construction various designs has been known for over four thousand years. In fact, this is the first product made specifically for the construction of residential buildings.
The first bricks are raw - were clay bars that were molded in wooden frames and dried naturally in hot climates. In ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, mud brick was made from clayey silt extracted from a few rivers. To increase the strength and reduce the shrinkage of the material, fine and chopped were added to the raw materials. The Egyptians laid dried bricks on a liquid clay mortar in the wall, while the Assyrians used freshly molded material, which was subsequently glued into a monolith. The strength of the mud brick was quite high, so it was used for the construction of impressive structures. Often it was combined with or with fired brick. By the way, the latter was used not only because of its higher strength, but also because of its inherent durability. Fired bricks were used to build palaces, temples and other religious buildings.
Brick figures and facts
In the X-XV centuries, brick buildings - temples and fortifications - were erected in almost all large cities of Ancient Rus. Old Russian cathedrals built of bricks in Vladimir, Novgorod, Pskov are also examples of Russian architecture.In the Middle Ages, the scope of the material was expanded - it began to be used as a decorative and expressive means: the masters performed patterned masonry of curved (shaped) glazed bricks... As an example, let us take the Russian patterned architecture of the 16th – 17th centuries.
The Russian brick that we know now began to be molded in the middle of the 15th century, when Ivan III began to rebuild the cathedrals, walls and towers of the Moscow Kremlin. The masterpiece of Russian architecture of the 16th century - the Intercession Cathedral (St. Basil's Cathedral) - was built of 18 types of bricks.
Later, Peter I rebuilt the Admiralty in stone and brick, erected the Peter and Paul Cathedral, the building of the Twelve Collegia, the Summer Palace, and Menshikov's palace. In total, production sheds in the area of \u200b\u200bthe capital of the Empire produced about 15 million pieces of bricks per year.
In the same chapter, I want to give one example that now seems more amusing than instructive. In 1725, an inclined bell tower 57 m high was built next to the Nevyansk brick factory (not far from Yekaterinburg).
In those days, the products of the plant were rejected very simply - each brick was simply dropped from the top of the tower... What a reliable quality control department!
For a long period of its existence, the brick-making technique has remained almost unchanged. The clay was mined by hand and kneaded by feet, molding was also done by hand. The brick was dried under a canopy or in open areas, and only in summer, and fired in floor ovens, temporary huts, laid out from dried raw materials. The material, the raw material for which was kneaded with feet, was called "heel".
In the middle of the 19th century, production was nevertheless mechanized: a belt press was used for molding, and an annular furnace for firing.
In the same years, the dimensions of the brick stabilized (the format, however, with some rounding has been preserved to this day). The best way to bandage seams in brickwork (taking into account the thickness of the seams) corresponds to a brick with dimensions of 250x120x65 mm.
The First World War and the Civil War completely destroy the Russian brick industry. But already in 1923, the reconstruction of facilities began; it acquires a particularly wide scope during the years of the first five-year plans. The first mechanized brick factories are being built in Podolsk and Lobny, near Moscow. By the way, a brick factory can be built not in the first place that comes across, but close to rich clay deposits... Clay of proper quality is not available everywhere in Russia.
Present and future of bricks
The general principle of obtaining fired ceramic bricks - extraction and preparation of clay, preparation of a mixture, molding and, finally, consolidation of the resulting shape, as well as structure - has not changed over the long history of brick existence. However, the technical equipment has been seriously improved. Modern brick factories are high-tech, fully mechanized and often robotic industries. The process is based on careful selection of raw materials, strict adherence to technological parameters and computer assessment of product quality.Distinguish ordinary (building) and front (facing, facade, finishing) brick.
Also produced stove and road material.
According to the size, ceramic bricks are classified as:
- single (250x120x65 mm),
- thickened, or one and a half (250x120x88 mm).
The latter (hollow) is much lighter, and therefore creates less stress on. In addition, it has higher thermal performance.
Even better heat-shielding and sound-insulating properties of the material with porous ceramic shard (special firing mode). The low average density of this brick allows the production of enlarged products and even large-format stones, the dimensions of which are 10-15 times larger than that of a single material.
The total area of \u200b\u200bhorizontal mortar joints is less, the presence of ridges and grooves on the side faces of such stones eliminates vertical seams... It turns out that the number (mortar joints) is significantly reduced.
The main consumer qualities of fired brick - strength and frost resistance. The strength indicator is the brand. For example, the M100 brand means that the material can withstand a load of 100 kg / cm2 (this is enough for the construction of a two- or three-story cottage). Most often, you can find brick M100, 125, 150 and 175 on sale.
Frost resistance is an indirect indicator of the durability of the material: the higher it is, the longer the service life of the brick is. Frost resistance grades - F15, F25, F35 and F50. For the Moscow region, a brick with a frost resistance of at least F35 is suitable.
For example, if a more durable (and expensive) brick is imposed on an inexperienced summer resident when buying, say, of the M 150 brand, while praising its strength compared to M100, then you should not give in to these sweet persuasions. For the construction of an array of walls of a 1-2-storey cottage, the strength of a brick of the M100 brand is enough for the eyes, and you should not overpay for unnecessary strength of the material.
It would be strange if the emergence of new technologies was not reflected in the brick business. Along with the usual ordinary bricks, ceramic large-sized porous stones... The largest of them - 15NF - is 51 cm thick.
It allows you to erect external walls of the house no insulation at all... At the same time, the buildings fully meet modern requirements for thermal protection.
A wall lined with porous blocks can stand for some time without facing plaster
For example, the thermal conductivity of porous stone 15NF (510x253x219 mm), which replaces 15 single bricks, is only 0.18 W / m · ° С. Complement the assortment line of additional stones (380x253x219 mm, 389x253x219 mm). That is, using such ceramic products, you can save a lot by deliberately refusing to purchase expensive ones.
In recent years, there has been a welcome trend towards improving the appearance of buildings. The result is the appearance facing brick different standard sizes, shapes, shades and textures.
The house is faced with bricks of the Wienerberger company. Photo:wienerberger.ru
On sale you can even find materials made according to the old technology of hand molding, as well as imitating manual production.
You will find detailed information on the intricacies of brick cladding in the article.
In addition, you may be interested in the following publications:
Good luck!
Red brick is the beginning of history.
Red brick (this is how the building ceramic brick is called) is rightfully recognized as one of the oldest building materials. When people first wanted to buy a brick, and what was the price of a brick at that time, historians do not give an exact answer to such questions. However, even in the Bible there is a mention of such a building material as red brick, in relation to the time immediately after the resettlement of people at the end of the Great Flood, that is, at the dawn of conscious human history. True, until recently, the most widespread in many countries was unbaked red brick, called raw, with the addition of straw. Meanwhile, the use in the construction of traditional fired brick red, the price of which is very affordable today, also dates back to the deepest antiquity (it was used in the course of buildings in Egypt, in the 3rd - 2nd millennium before the onset of our era). That ancient, in contrast to the red brick used now, was square and flat in shape (its sides were equal to 30-60 centimeters with a thickness of only 3-9) and bore the name "plinfa" (from the Greek Plinthos - brick).
Used pseudo red brick and in architecture Ancient Rome and Mesopotamia, which is especially noticeable in the territory of the Trees. Italy, where the Etruscans lived. They not only erected temples of ancient red brick, but also additionally decorated them with terracotta details. The red brick in the buildings of that ancient time has already begun to acquire a somewhat oblong shape, quite familiar to us.
In Byzantium for many centuries red brickwas the main building material. Of course, it was far from everyone's familiar red brick today. The masonry was usually carried out on fresh lime mortar, to which crushed brick chips were necessarily added. Sometimes its rows alternated with masonry made of stone.
Medieval architects managed to advance much further than their "ancient" predecessors, since they used not only the structural possibilities provided by a single red brick, but also decorative ones. Along with the execution of patterned masonry, its combination with majolica and terracotta details has found wide application. At the same time, Europe gratefully absorbed the thousand-year experience of various peoples. On the territory of present-day Germany, red brick gave an unusual name to the architectural style - "brick Gothic", which prevailed there from the 12th to the 16th century.
Red brick history in Russia
Red brick figured in Russian architecture. The most striking example of the use of brick building in Russia during the time of Tsar John III was the construction of walls and churches belonging to the ensemble of the Moscow Kremlin, which even Italian masters envied.
The price of brick has always been not too high, and the material was valued for its aesthetics and durability. Under Peter the Great, the quality of this building material was evaluated extremely strictly. At that time, the delivery of bricks to the construction site was carried out by carts and the bricks were simply dumped from them: if more than 3 pieces were broken during the "unloading", the entire batch was rejected.
Red brick was generally considered a "native" material for St. Petersburg buildings. After all, Peter I strove to build Petersburg as a truly European city. His desire as a result led to the fact that literally all buildings that were not built of stone or red brick were stylized as all the same brick houses. Until now, the best examples of houses of that time, located in the central part of St. Petersburg, not only look great, but also serve as the best proof of the durability and strength of red brick as a material. Modern developments have made it possible to significantly expand its range and bring it to perfection in both aesthetic and technological properties.
Red brick making methods
Until the beginning of the 19th century, the technique of making red bricks remained very primitive and very laborious. One and a half and single red bricks were formed by hand, it was dried only in summer, fired in temporary stoves standing on the floor, which were laid out from dried raw materials. By the middle of the 19th century, a ring kiln was finally built together with a belt press, which led to a revolution in the production of this building material. At the same time, clay-processing machines were invented - the so-called runners, pug mills, and dryers. In our time, more than 80 percent of all red brick is produced by year-round brick factories, including large mechanized enterprises, with a capacity of more than 200-hundred million pieces. in year.
Thus, the development and brick sale with every century it expanded and developed in response to the huge demand for this building material. The main thing that has always driven its production, made it more attractive for professional builders and gave maximum profit, is the excellent quality of red brick and a favorable price at which you could buy a brick. Therefore, the main requirement for each brick factory was the presence of clay at its location, so as not to spend money on their transportation. Especially valued are shallow, homogeneous clays, which are rich in sand, contain iron, lime, potassium, which is why they are relatively fusible and easily sintered during firing. Only clays with an admixture of marl stone are completely unsuitable for the production process. To date, knowledge of the history of the appearance of red brick, its technical production standards that existed earlier and are relevant now is something without which it is impossible to create a high-quality red brick.
The modern construction industry is inconceivable without such an ordinary and unadventurous at first glance invention of the world's population - a brick. On the pages of the Internet portal for low-rise construction http://parthenon-house.ru you will find an unlimited number of materials and articles to one degree or another covering the issues of building houses and mansions from bricks or with the use of modern clay products - porous blocks and pebbles. In this article, we want to tell you about the history of brick building, which goes back to the times of the Old Civilizations, the Egyptian Pharaohs and the kings of Rome.
Brick making in Old Egypt
Countless archaeological excavations allow us to say with confidence that 1st bricks as a building material were used by man about 5 thousand years ago. But who exactly invented brick it is impossible to say for certain. Most likely, the brick in the awareness that we put into this word was not an invention of one person, but the fruit of the evolutionary development of the very technology of building strong and cheap housing from scrap materials. Scientists were not able to accurately indicate and find the place of construction of the first brick building, but the fact that these buildings were being erected in Mesopotamia, the area between the Tigris and the Euphrates (Mesopotamia), is not a coincidence. The fact is that in these places there was always plenty of water, clay and grass. And all this grace was illuminated by the hot sun practically all year round. It was from these natural materials that local inhabitants built their homes. The buildings were erected from grass covered with clay.
The clay dried under the sun's rays and became tough, with all this it did not let water through and perfectly protected from bad weather. People saw this, but because they strove to facilitate their own work, they came up with this, unpretentious at first glance, a block of grass and clay, which we call a brick. The development of the production of the first bricks was ordinary: sticky clay was combined with water, grass was added for strength and strength, and the bricks already formed in such a way under the hot rays of the sun dried and became hard like stone.
Raw brick making
It was still adobe brick or raw brick. Raw brick and at the moment in our time it is widely used in almost all countries of the world as the main building material.
The first who mastered the technology of firing bricks in a kiln were the ancient Egyptians.... The images that have survived from the time of the pharaohs clearly show how the brick was made, and temples and houses were built from it. For example, the city walls of Jericho are made of bricks, which had a shape similar to today's loaves of snow-white bread.
Walls of Jericho made of bricks
Brick became the main building materials in Mesopotamia and virtually all towns during the heyday of this civilization were built from it. For example, in Babylon, the most beautiful town in the old world, all buildings were built of bricks.
The most ancient Romans and Greeks became great masters in the production of bricks and the construction of buildings and structures. Specifically from the Greek word "plinthos", which practically means "brick" got its name plinths, a product that marked the newest milestone in the history of brick production.
This is curious: Another Greek word, keramos, translates to clay. And the term "ceramics" means products made of fired clay. Once in old Athens, potters lived compactly in one of the districts of the town. This area began to be called "Ceramic" by the Athenians.
Plinths - the oldest burnt bricks. Made in special woody forms. Plinth was dried for 10-14 days, then fired in an oven. They were square and large. In Old Rome, plinths were usually made of the following dimensions 50 x 55 x 4.5 cm, and in Byzantium 30 x 35 x 2.5.
Plinths were made and much smaller, but they were used as shingles. As we can see, the oldest plinths were significantly thinner than modern bricks, but this event did not in the least prevent the same Romans from building their eminent Roman arches and vaults.
Outer arches of the Colosseum
Such bricks were simply molded, dried and fired. They were built from them with the introduction of a large layer of mortar, often equal in thickness to the plinth itself, due to which the wall of the temple became "striped". From time to time, after several rows of plinths, a row of natural stone was laid. In Byzantium plinth walls almost never plastered.
Brick in Russia
In pre-Mongol Kievan Rus, which took a lot from the culture of Byzantium, including technologies in the field of construction, plinth became the main material for the construction of structural parts of buildings and was used in the ancient Russian temple architecture of the 10th - early 13th centuries, namely from them the Sophia Cathedral (Kiev), 1037, Church of the Savior on Berestovo, 1113-25, Annunciation Church (Vitebsk), Borisoglebskaya Church (Grodno).
The first brick workshops in Russia appeared at monasteries. Their products were mostly used for the needs of the temple. It is believed that the first religious building in Russia, built of brick, was the Church of the Tithes in Kiev.
Church of the Tithes in Kiev
This is curious: In the scientific literature, guesses have been expressed that, together with the plinth in Russia, already in the XII-XIII centuries. made and block brick, which was used in conjunction with plinth. In reality, block bricks of Romanesque origin first leaked to Kiev from Poland in the very last pre-Mongol years. Squared bricks, together with plinth, were used only in those cases when buildings built earlier were repaired with them. Examples are the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Pechersky Monastery, the Kiev rotunda, the Cathedral of Misha in Pereyaslavl, rebuilt soon after they were damaged in the earthquake of 1230. In addition, plinths of a narrow format were sometimes mistaken for block bricks, i.e. "Halves", especially if they had a particularly huge thickness (for example, in the Novgorod Cathedral of the Antoniev Monastery and the Old Ladoga Cathedral of the Nikolsky Monastery - more than 7 cm).
In fact, in Capital Russia molded brick began to be used everywhere only from the end of the 15th century, and the first brick factory was laid in 1475. And already from this brick the walls of the Kremlin in Moscow were built.
This is curious: The history of the emergence of the first brick factory in the Capital Kingdom is quite fascinating. In 1475 he was invited to Moscow from Italy constructor Aristotle Fioravanti for the construction of the Kremlin. But Aristotle began not with construction, but with setting up the production of bricks with a special kiln. And very quickly this plant began to create very high quality brick... In honor of the designer he was christened "Aristotelian brick". The walls of the Novgorod and Kazan Kremlin were also built from this "clay stone". "Aristotelian brick" had a look actually similar to modern brick and the subsequent dimensions 289x189x67 mm. "Sovereign Brick" - the first in Russia, which meant bandaging the seams.
Despite the exceptional popularity of bricks as a building material, right up to the 19th century, brick production technology in Russia remained primitive and laborious. The bricks were molded by hand, dried only in summer, and fired in floor ovens, made of dried raw bricks, or in small portable ovens. In the middle of the 19th century in technology brick production there was a real upheaval. For the first time, an annular kiln and a belt press were built, and the first brick dryers appeared. At this time, clay processing machines, runners, dryers, and clay mills appeared.
This allowed us to take brick making to an excellent new level. The next question arose about the properties of products. In order to separate the scammers from honest producers, a branding system was invented. In other words each brick factory had its own corporate symbol - a stamp that was applied to the brick... In the 19th century, the first technical description of brick, a list of its characteristics and parameters, also appeared.
Old branded brick
This is curious:Under Peter 1, the quality of bricks was evaluated very strictly. The batch of bricks brought to the construction site was simply dumped from the cart: if more than 3 bricks were broken during all this, the whole batch was rejected. During the construction of St. Petersburg, Peter I introduced the so-called. "Stone tax" - payment with bricks for entering the city.
Modern brick acquired the familiar dimensions - 250x120x65 mm - in 1927, its weight is less than 4.3 kg.
Five thousand years have passed, and brick, as before, remains the most popular building materials and is not going to concede its primacy to anyone. The evolution in the development of technology for the production of bricks and clay products is in some way akin to the evolution of man according to Darwin's theory. If we draw an analogy, then at first the emergence of simple forms (adobe huts), then primitive man (raw brick), now modern man (burnt brick and clay pebbles). The evolutionary development of man and the technology of brick production go hand in hand, and this pattern testifies that as long as our civilization exists, brick will also exist as the base of the entire construction industry made by the population of the earth for many centuries.
We advise:
– Brick house projects >>>
– House building bricks >>>
– Clay brick and pebbles >>>
– Construction of a brick house >>>
– Price of building a brick house >>>
– Porous bricks and stones - warm ceramics >>>
– Building a house from clay stone (block) >>>
– Construction of houses from Porotherm blocks >>>
- The Central Bank told about the new tariffs for the civil liability insurance What's new for the civil liability insurance from June 1
- What is sleep and who uses it What does sleep mean income
- Debit cards "Sberbank of Russia": what does this concept mean, how to use, an overview of the offered by the bank
- Simplified taxation system What does it mean in accounting usn