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Glossary of Stone-Related Terms

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P

PALLETIZED: A system of stacking stone on wooden pallets for shipment or storage.

Stone which comes palletized is easily moved and transported by modern handling equipment. Palletized stone generally arrives at the site in better condition then non-palletized material.

PANEL: A single unit of fabricated stone veneer.

PANEL WALL: A non-bearing wall consisting of panels of various materials, each panel being separately held in frame. The frame may be the structure itself or fastened to the structural framework of the building.

PARAPET: A low wall around the perimeter of a building at roof level or around balconies.

PARAPET WALL: Part of any wall entirely above the roof line.

PARCLOSE: A screen of stone separating chapels, especially at the east end of the aisles, from the body of the church.

PARGING: Dampproofing by applying a coat of mortar to the back of the stone units or to the face of the back-up material.

PARQUETRY: Inlay of stone floors in geometrical or other patterns consisting of two or more colors or materials.

PARTITION: An interior wall one story or less in height, generally non- loadbearing.

PASCAL: SI unit expressing force per unit area (PSI is the English equivalent).

PATCH: Repair compound used to fill natural voids or to replace chips and broken corners or edges in fabricated pieces of dimension stone. Mixed or selected to match the stone in color and texture.

PATINA: The color and texture added to a surface by time and various allies.

PAVER: A single unit of fabricated stone for use as an exterior paving material.

PEDESTAL: A stone supporting structure or piece for a bust, column, statue, or vase.

PEDIMENT: The triangular face of a gable, if separated by entablature or molding from the lower wall and treated as decorative unit.

PENETRANT: A protective treatment that lines masonry pores; no film is formed on the surface.

PERFORATED WALL: One which contains a considerable number of relatively small openings. Often called pierced wall or screened wall.

style=`color: black`>: The rate of vapor transmission of one grain per square foot per inch of mercury vapor pressure difference.

PERMEABILITY: The property of a substance which permits passage of water vapor; moisture vapor transmission.

PERPENDER: A stone extending through the thickness of a wall and finished on both ends.

PERRONS: Slabs of stone set on other stones serving as stops and arches in gardens.

PETROGLYPHY: Primitive stone carving.

PHENOCYRST: In igneous rocks, the relatively large and conspicuous crystals in a finer-grain matrix or ground mass.

Ph VALUE: A number denoting the degree of acidity or alkalinity; 7 is a neutral value. Acidity increases with decreasing values below 7, while alkalinity increases with increasing values above 7.

PHENOL: A class of acid organic compounds used in the manufacture of epoxy resins, phenolformaldehyde resins, plasticizers, plastics and wood preservatives.

PICKED: Stone dressed using mason’s point

PICK & DIP: A method of laying brick with one hand and, with the other hand, dip enough mortar on a trowel to lay the brick. Sometimes called the Eastern or New England Method.

PIER: Solid stone support, smaller than and distinct from a column.

PILASTER: Engaged pier of shallow depth; in classical architecture it follows the height and width of related columns with similar base sod cap. In classical architecture, it follows the height and width of related columns, with similar base and cap.

PIT QUARRY: Below ground-level quarry.

PITCHED: Surface resembling rock-faced produced with pitching tool.

PITCHED STONE: Stone having arris clearly defined, face however is roughly cut with pitching chisel used along the line which becomes the arris.

PITCHING TOOL: Similar to large chisel but with blunt, not sharp, broad edge, about 6mm thick.

PISCINA: In ecclesiastical architecture, a basin of stone or marble in which the challice is washed after the rite of the Eucharist.

PLANER: Machine for planing moldings on to stone; machine used to reduce thickness and gauge stone; machine used to produce a machine finish on limestone.

PLASTER OF PARIS: A calcined gypsum in a hemihydrate state.

PLATE TRACERY: Tracery designs, usually simple and geometrical, cut through a thin slab of stone, as distinguished from a tracery proper, which is formed by mortared sections of molding.

PLINTHS: The lower square part of the base of a column. A square base or a lower block, as in a pedestal. The base block at the juncture of base-board and trim around an opening.

PLUCKED FINISH: Obtained by rough planing the surface of stone, braking or plucking out small particles to give rough texture.

PLUG AND FEATHERS: Tools used for splitting stone blocks.

PLUMB BOB: A shaped metal weight that is suspended from the lower end of a line to determine the vertical trueness.

PLUMB RULE: A narrow board with parallel edges having a straight line drawn through the middle and a string attached at the upper end of the line for determining a vertical plane.

PLYWOOD: Laminated wood in sheet form, with alternate laminations, changing direction of grain. Dimensionally unstable in the presence of moisture.

POINT: Chisel drawn nearly to a point.

POINT FINISH: A rough, tooled surface.

POINTING: The final filling and finishing of mortar joints that have been raked out.

POLISHED: The finest and smoothest finish available in stone, generally only possible on hard, dense materials. Or, a glossy finish which brings out the full color and character of the stone.

POLYESTER RESIN: A flexible, usually thermal setting resin formed by a polymerization process using a small amount of accelerator compound and used as an adhesive or to repair or fill certain stones.

POLYETHYLENE FILM: Plastic film sheet used for curing or as a cleavage or isolation membrane.

POROSITY: Ratio of pore space to the total volume of material expressed as a percent ..

PORPHYRY: Igneous rock characterized by distinct and contrasting sizes of course and fine grained crystals. Used as a decorative building stone.

PORTLAND CEMENT: A hydraulic cement product obtained by pulverizing and calcimining a properly proportioned mixture of three minerals: lime, silica, and alumina.

POULTICING: Method of drawing soluble salts or stains out of stone by applying an absorbent such as clay or diatomaceous earth, mixed to a paste with water or cleaning solvent.

PREASSEMBLED UNITS: Two or more stones combined into a single unit by use of

epoxy resins, steel framing or concrete backing.

PREABRICATED MASONRY: Masonry fabricated in a location other than its final location in the structure. Also known as preassembled, panelized, and prelaid masonry.

PRECAST: Having received its final form before introduction into a structure, as in precast concrete slabs.

PREDELLA: Platform surrounding an altar.

PRESSURE RELIEVING JOINT: An open horizontal joint below the supporting angle or hanger located at approximately every floor line and not over 15 ft. apart horizontally, and every 20-30 ft. vertically, to prevent the weight from being transmitted to the masonry below. These joints are to be caulked with a resilient nonstaining material to prevent moisture penetration.

PRISM: A small assemblage made with masonry units and mortar and sometimes grout. Primarily used to predict the strength of full scale masonry members.

PRODUCER: One who quarries stone.

PROFILE: The outline of the exposed face of a cross section.

PROFILE MACHINE: Machine for cutting moldings on to stone.

PROJECTIONS: Refers to the pulling out of stones in a veneered wall to give an effect of ruggedness. The amount each stone is pulled out can vary between ?” and 1 ?”; stones are either pulled out at the same degree at both ends or sometimes one end is pulled out leaving the other flush with the majority of veneer.

PUMICE: An exceptionally cellular, glassy lava, resembling a solid froth.

PUNCH: Chisel drawn to a narrow blade used for roughing process.

PYRITE: The natural sulfides of certain metals. The most common is iron pyrite, which is iron disulfide, a brittle mineral that is brassy yellow in color with greenish-black streaks.

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