| Forum: | Castles In General & Medieval History |
| Topic: | masonry marks |
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------------------ Gordon. ------------------ Gordon.Glaive203
did british stonecutters use them and what form did they take? How large were the holes that nippers fitted into and how high were walls built before the masons started to use them to raise the stones?wurdsmiff I've seen a variety of methods of lifting stone displayed in medieval documents/ illustrations, none involving 'nippers',though one or two involving large pincers. Presumably if this is what you mean it would match the size of the implement, and be deep enough to carry the weight of the stone, which would be variable. I don't think anyone could give you precise detail in answer to that. Or are you referring to children? Nippers is a coloquial term for them. I've seen no illustration of children going through holes or lifting stone.
The use of masons marks was commonplace, though their function not entirely clear. They were certainly used to mark the work of particular craftsmen, though whether this was simply a signature, or a system of acreditation since each would be paid for the work he had done, no one is certain. The marks took a variety of forms, usually a symbol or letter which could identify the mason, a star, a letter....the symbol did not matter as long as it identified the worker.
Other masons marks were used as positional guides, supplying information about placement of statuary, ornament, or structural feature. These also varied and are thought to have give quite precise data on what went where and how.
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www.castlesontheweb.com/members/wurdsmiff/castles.htm duncan The stone pinchers that i have heard of are very much like ice tongs, is this what you are in reference of? If so, the holes were about 1 inch to 2 inches deep in a v cut and 1 to 3 inchs wide due to breakage of the stone around the area. Most had 2 or more indentions. The blocks weighed any where from 5 ton to a 100 lbs. The height of the remaining wall was only 4 feet due to nature and the effects of man. The quarry is in a hill side and is 1/4 mile deep x 1/2 mile wide x 1 mile long.The problem is that the stone work on that site can not be reliably dated. The use of flat headed drill bits, metal tool marks, and wooden wedges tend to confuse the issue even further. Hope this helps. Glaive203 thanks,nippers is the proper term for those pincers as far as I know.I tool illustrated in the old brown britanias in the article masonry and labelled "nippers"looks exactly like the MA nippers I've seen illuminated. Peter Regarding mason marks.
A friend of mine has just had book published by 'Shire Books' on the subject. Should be appearing in the shops now, by Malcolm Hislop.wurdsmiff Peter-A title might help those who are interested, or an ISBN!
Why not add it to the Book Nook? We're trying to buid up a list of useful references for everyone.
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www.castlesontheweb.com/members/wurdsmiff/castles.htm Peter Re: Mason Marks, I hope to find out soon, as I need to review it for the next issue of 'Postern'. Will update when I can.
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