Earth construction techniques have been found dating more than 8000 years in areas of the ancient world that has a scarcity of timber: Turkistan, Assyria, Egypt. The Great Wall of China (4000 years old) was originally made out of rammed earth but later covered with stone. The Sun Pyramid in Teotihuacan, Mexico (approximately 700 AD) has a core of approximately 2 million tons of rammed earth. Today in the Sudan, Mali, Iran and China as an example, over 50 million people live in earthen dwelling structures. In the area now known as Germany, wattle & daub has been used since the Bronze Age. Rammed earthen forts were built in Hispania from 100 BC. Nearly all pre-Columbian cultures in Mexico, Central America and South America used adobe construction methods. During the middle ages in Europe, wattle & daub, mud brick and rammed earth techniques were extensively used. Many of these structures are in use today. Please refer to"The History of Cob"for more history. Asian examples may be found here. |