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New introduction to the 1998 edition of

In the early years of BRE, or the BRS as it was then, a series of Special Reports and Technical Papers were produced from 1921 onwards. The Special Reports were generally review and compilations of previous research by BRS and others, whilst the Technical Papers were BRS research papers. The list of topics covered would not be out of place in a current list of research projects, and included heat transmission through walls, fire resistant construction and the use of cob in walls, as well as cement and concrete. Probably the best known of the Special Reports is No. 18 The Weathering of Natural Building Stones, by R. J. Schaffer (1932) and known almost universally as 'Schaffer'. This volume was reprinted in 1948 and a facsimile produced by HMSO in 1985 which is still quoted by many authorities as a basic textbook for the subject.

The list of authors for the other Reports and Papers includes many of the great names of building materials research including Lea, Brady, Davy, Glanville and Cowper. The Special Report by Cowper on Lime and Lime Mortars (No. 9) was originally published in 1927 and provides a comprehensive review of lime burning, the classification of limes, the use of limes, limewashes, lime plaster, pozzolanas, mortars and concretes. When first published it represented a 'state-of-the-art' review and it remained a valuable source of information and guidance for many years.

The revival in interest in the use of traditional lime mortars, plasters and washes has led to a revival in the fortunes of Cowper's Report. Its reproduction in the facsimile edition will allow the valuable information it contains to be made available to both those who have known of the report for many years and to those who are new to the study of lime mortars, plasters and washes.

Tim Yates
October 1997

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Lime and Lime Mortars