Stone and carving language
Architecture and masonry
Masonry made from squared or carefully dressed stone units laid in courses, usually with regular faces and comparatively fine joints.
Project note: Ashlar describes a masonry arrangement and finish standard, not a stone species. Unit sizes, joint widths, face finish and tolerances still need to be specified.
Also: Corner stone
A dressed unit, or the group of units, forming and often visually emphasising the external corner of a building.
Project note: A drawing should show bonding, returns, joint alignment and whether the quoin is structural masonry, veneer or a decorative surround.
The triangular, segmental or otherwise classically derived crowning feature over a building front, door, window or architectural composition.
Project note: Specify its profile, projection, joints, water-shedding detail and support. The name alone does not define how a stone pediment is assembled or fixed.
A wedge-shaped masonry unit forming part of an arch; the units work together around the curve.
Project note: Templates should identify the intrados, extrados, joint geometry, springing points and piece numbering rather than relying on a typical arch detail.
The central voussoir at the crown of an arch, often made visually prominent.
Project note: In decorative cladding a keystone may not perform the structural role associated with a traditional masonry arch; the project engineer should define the actual support system.
A masonry treatment that emphasises individual blocks or joints, often through recessed joints, bevelled edges or deliberately roughened faces.
Project note: Agree the joint profile, margin, face texture and sample panel. Rusticated is not a sufficiently precise fabrication instruction on its own.
Sculpture
Sculpture in which three-dimensional forms remain attached to, or project from, a supporting background.
Project note: Record the overall panel thickness, background plane, maximum projection, undercutting, viewing distance and intended lighting.
Also: Low relief, Basso-relievo
Relief in which the design projects only slightly from the background, generally with little or no deep undercutting.
Project note: Low is descriptive, not a dimension. State the maximum relief depth and identify any areas that may be vulnerable in handling or installation.
Also: Alto-relievo
Relief with strongly projecting forms, some of which may be substantially undercut or appear almost detached from the background.
Project note: Projection, centre of gravity, fragile sections, packing and fixings require explicit review; the term does not establish a safe panel thickness.
Also: Scale model, Design model
A small preliminary model used to visualise and develop a larger sculpture or architectural feature.
Project note: A maquette may guide form and composition but is not automatically a dimensionally exact production model. Its scale, purpose and approval status should be recorded.
Stone and finish
Also: Bedding plane
The plane broadly parallel to the layers in which a sedimentary stone was formed.
Project note: Bed orientation can matter to appearance, fabrication and performance, but the correct orientation is stone- and detail-specific. It should be confirmed from source information and technical review.
The edge created where two stone faces meet.
Project note: Specify whether the arris is sharp, eased, rounded or chamfered, together with any dimension. Trade usage can vary, so a profile detail or sample is safer than the word alone.
Also: Book match
An arrangement in which opposite faces of adjacent slabs are opened and placed together to create a mirrored veining pattern.
Project note: The achievable mirror depends on the cut sequence and the actual block. Approve a numbered layout rather than assuming perfect symmetry from a small sample.
A group of samples selected to show an agreed span of expected colour, marking or texture rather than a single idealised appearance.
Project note: State whether the range is indicative, approval-limiting or linked to a specific current block or batch. A range sample cannot show every natural variation.
Also: Dry lay
A temporary arrangement of identified pieces without permanent fixing, used to review sequence, pattern, jointing or visual distribution.
Project note: Record the approved piece numbers and orientation. A workshop dry layout does not replace the installer’s checks of the actual substrate, setting out and site dimensions.
A smooth, low-sheen or matt finish produced by abrasive preparation stopped before a high polish is achieved.
Project note: Sheen, colour and visible tool pattern vary by stone and abrasive sequence. Honed does not automatically mean slip-resistant, stain-proof or suitable for exterior use.
A highly refined, reflective surface produced through progressively finer abrasive stages where the stone can accept that finish.
Project note: Approve a sample for the identified stone. A polished surface does not guarantee resistance to scratching, etching, staining or weathering.
Making
A subtractive process in which tools shape stone or another solid material by cutting, incising, scraping or removing material.
Project note: Project records should distinguish the actual machine and hand stages. The word carved does not, by itself, mean that every stage was completed only by hand.
An approach in which the sculptor develops the form directly in the final material rather than mechanically reproducing a fully resolved model.
Project note: Direct carving can still involve drawings, measurements or preparatory studies. Use the term only when it accurately describes the recorded making method.
Also: Machine roughing, Rough machining
A computer-controlled machining stage that removes substantial excess material to approach the intended form while leaving allowance for later operations.
Project note: Roughing is not the finished surface or final inspection state. The digital file, datum, tool access, remaining stock and later machine or hand stages should be identified.
Also: Finish machining
A computer-controlled machining stage using finer toolpaths after roughing to approach the required geometry and surface quality.
Project note: CNC finishing may still leave tool marks, inaccessible areas and material for hand refinement. It does not by itself establish the approved final finish.
Manual refinement of form, detail, edges or surface using appropriate carving and finishing tools after earlier shaping stages.
Project note: Name the intended visual result or approved sample. Hand-finished does not establish how much of the preceding work was manual.
Drawings and control
An agreed reference point, line or plane from which dimensions and positions are measured.
Project note: Drawings should identify the same datum across the stone, support and site information. Uncoordinated datums are a common source of interface errors.
The permitted variation from a stated dimension, position, profile or other measurable requirement.
Project note: A tolerance must identify what is measured, from which datum, by what method and at which stage. It is not a general allowance for an unapproved design change.
A version-controlled drawing issued for review and recorded acceptance of the matters shown before the next agreed stage.
Project note: Approval confirms the identified version for its stated purpose. It does not silently transfer structural, installation or statutory responsibilities to the person approving it.
Fabrication or coordination information showing how identified pieces are intended to be made, numbered and related to specified interfaces.
Project note: The title block should state status, revision, units, scale and responsibility. A shop drawing is not automatically a structural design or installation method statement.
Source register