Masonry Magazine January 2017 Page. 65
hen Jeff Buczkiewicz of the MCAA asked me to prepare a series of articles for Masonry, he suggested I describe some of the historic sites and restoration work I have seen or been involved in over the years. After giving that some thought, I decided I could do that but there is a bigger opportunity here. While I have had some interesting experiences, you the readers have collectively had many more. So, let's share!
My proposal is that I'll highlight some of my masonry experiences, adventures, and projects from around the world and you can add to them! Send in your photographs and stories of great masonry sites or projects you've visited or projects for which you have first-hand experience. Let's celebrate all that is masonry. Let's tell stories; ifthey are true, that's even better. You need not write a lot. Just provide a short anecdote or experience that others would find amusing, but always highlighting the positive aspects of masonry construction.
This should not be difficult. Why? Because nearly all the significant monuments and cultural sites of the world that have survived the times are masonry. So, we have a wealth of masonry structures to talk about. We can go back millennia to the Pyramids, the Parthenon, and more. Or, we can talk about all the medieval structures that still survive as well as any modern masonry.
Masonry is unique historically! The only other construction material that has some longevity is timber. The two oldest intact timber structures in the world are the Midas Tomb (c. 740 BC) in Turkey and the next oldest is likely the Buddhist temple Lhasa Jokhang in Tibet (c. 639 CE). These structures are rare for their age because timber rots or burns. Not so for masonry! So, historical masonry structures are far more numerous and have lasted much longer. Our industry has passed the test of time!
The great thing about telling these stories is that we can get them from anywhere in the world, because masonry is the most utilized construction material.
I 'II start this off with a visit to Iraq.
Unless you have been in the military in the past 15 years or emigrated from there, it's not likely been one of your tourist destinations. That is a shame because the region is home to the land between the Tigris and