Lime mortar
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Lime mortar or torching is a masonry mortar composed of lime and an aggregate such as sand, mixed with water. It is one of the oldest known types of mortar, used in ancient Rome and Greece, when it la
A stone wall in France with lime mortar grouting being applied. Right: unapplied. Centre: lime mortar applied with a trowel. Left: lime mortar applied and then beaten back and brushed with a churn brush.
The large flakes of oyster shell are a signal that this is a faux shell mortar. In fact it was a very hard Portland replacement which luckily had not done much harm to the brick.
Spalling of brick in an 18th century chimney. The lower section is older than the upper. Note that the while the lower mortar is deteriorated, it is not as bad as the brick.
Roman concrete
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Roman concrete, also called opus caementicium, was used in construction in ancient Rome. Like its modern equivalent, Roman concrete was based on a hydraulic-setting cement added to an aggregate.
The Pantheon in Rome is an example of Roman concrete construction.
Caesarea harbour in Roman Judaea, an example of underwater Roman concrete technology on a large scale
The "Temple of Mercury" in Baiae, a Roman frigidarium pool of a bathhouse built in the 1st century BC containing the oldest surviving concrete dome, and largest one before the Pantheon.
Example of opus caementicium on a tomb on the ancient Appian Way in Rome. The original covering has been removed.