Roman cement

For the architectural material actually used by the ancient Romans, see Roman concrete.
Above the ornate south doorway of Lichfield Cathedral stand seven figures carved in Roman cement.

Roman cement is a substance developed by James Parker in the 1780s, being patented in 1796.[1][2]

The name is misleading, as it is nothing like any material used by the Romans, but was a "natural cement" made by burning septaria – nodules that are found in certain clay deposits, and that contain both clay minerals and calcium carbonate. The burnt nodules were ground to a fine powder. This product, made into a mortar with sand, set in 5–15 minutes.[1][2][3] The success of Roman cement led other manufacturers to develop rival products by burning artificial mixtures of clay and chalk.[1][4][5]

  1. ^ a b c "James Parker's Patent for "Roman Cement" in 1796 (Patent No 2120: granted 28 June, enrolled 27 July)". Cement Kilns. 28 June 1796. Retrieved 20 May 2013.
  2. ^ a b Roman Kozłowski; David Hughes; Johannes Weber (2010). "Roman cements - key materials of the built heritage of the nineteenth century". In M. Boştenaru Dan; R. Přikryl; Á. Török (eds.). Materials, Technologies and Practice in Historic Heritage Structures. Springer.
  3. ^ "Roman Cement - What is it?". IATCS - Institute of Art and Technology / Conservation Sciences, University of Applied Arts Vienna. Retrieved 2013-05-20.
  4. ^ "What is Roman Cement?". Roman Cement, LLC. Retrieved 2013-05-20.
  5. ^ R. J. M. Sutherland; Dawm Humm; Mike Chrimes (2001). Historic Concrete: The Background to Appraisal. Thomas Telford. pp. 46–52. ISBN 978-0-7277-2875-3. Retrieved 20 May 2013.