Rag-stone
Encyclopedia
Rag-stone is a name given by some architectural writers to work done with stone
s which are quarried in thin pieces, such as the Horsham
sandstone
, Yorkshire
stone, the slate
stones, but this is more properly flag or slab work. By rag-stone, near London
, is meant an excellent material from the neighborhood of Maidstone
. It is a very hard limestone
of bluish-grey color, and peculiarly suited for medieval work. It is often laid as uncoursed work, or random work, sometimes as random coursed work and sometimes as regular ashlar
.
Ragstone, a dull grey stone, is still quarried on an industrial scale
close to the Kent Downs AONB. It has traditionally been used within
the AONB as a road stone, cobble or sett and a walling block.
Although difficult to ‘dress’ with a regular face it has been used as
rectangular blocks for the construction of walls and buildings and
was very popular for the construction of 19th century churches.
More frequently, owing to the difficult and variable nature of the
stone, it is seen as irregular and self faced irregular blocks in walling.
Due to its irregular shape, as with flint, ragstone has been set within
brick quoins and bands. ‘Spalls’, fist sized irregular chips of ragstone,
have been used to surface paths but modern usage of ragstone is as
a general construction aggregate, including fill for gabions and loose
or partly binding gravels.
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
s which are quarried in thin pieces, such as the Horsham
Horsham Stone
Horsham Stone is a type of calcerous, flaggy sandstone containing millions of minute sand grains. It is also high in mica and quartz. The rock extends in an arc-like formation for several kilometres around the West Sussex town of Horsham from which it bears its name and lies just below the Wealden...
sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
stone, the slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
stones, but this is more properly flag or slab work. By rag-stone, near London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, is meant an excellent material from the neighborhood of Maidstone
Maidstone
Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...
. It is a very hard limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
of bluish-grey color, and peculiarly suited for medieval work. It is often laid as uncoursed work, or random work, sometimes as random coursed work and sometimes as regular ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
.
Ragstone, a dull grey stone, is still quarried on an industrial scale
close to the Kent Downs AONB. It has traditionally been used within
the AONB as a road stone, cobble or sett and a walling block.
Although difficult to ‘dress’ with a regular face it has been used as
rectangular blocks for the construction of walls and buildings and
was very popular for the construction of 19th century churches.
More frequently, owing to the difficult and variable nature of the
stone, it is seen as irregular and self faced irregular blocks in walling.
Due to its irregular shape, as with flint, ragstone has been set within
brick quoins and bands. ‘Spalls’, fist sized irregular chips of ragstone,
have been used to surface paths but modern usage of ragstone is as
a general construction aggregate, including fill for gabions and loose
or partly binding gravels.