page_title: Earth structure
section_title: Rammed earth
hierarchical_section_title: Earth structure / Materials / Rammed earth
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Alte Schule (von 1836/37, Pisébauweise) in Bonbaden (Lahn-Dill-Kreis, Hessen) English: Old school (built of rammed earth in 1836/37) in Bonbaden (district Lahn-Dill, Hesse)
context_page_description: An earth structure is a building or other structure made largely from soil. Since soil is a widely available material, it has been used in construction since prehistoric times.
  It may be combined with other materials, compressed and/or baked to add strength.
  Soil is still an economical material for many applications, and may have low environmental impact both during and after construction.
  Earth structure materials may be as simple as mud, or mud mixed with straw to make cob. Sturdy dwellings may be also built from sod or turf. Soil may be stabilized by the addition of lime or cement, and may be compacted into rammed earth. Construction is faster with pre-formed adobe or mudbricks, compressed earth blocks, earthbags or fired clay bricks.
  Types of earth structure include earth shelters, where a dwelling is wholly or partly embedded in the ground or encased in soil. Native American earth lodges are examples. Wattle and daub houses use a "wattle" of poles interwoven with sticks to provide stability for mud walls. Sod houses were built on the northwest coast of Europe, and later by European settlers on the North American prairies.
context_section_description: Rammed earth is a technique for building walls using natural raw materials such as earth, chalk, lime or gravel.
  A rammed earth wall is built by placing damp soil in a temporary form. The soil is manually or mechanically compacted and then the form is removed.
  Rammed earth is generally made without much water, and so does not need much time to dry as the building rises. It is susceptible to moisture, so must be laid on a course that stops rising dampness, must be roofed or covered to keep out water from above, and may need protection through some sort of plaster, paint or sheathing.
  In China, rammed earth walls were built by the Longshan people in 2600–1900 BC, during the period when cities first appeared in the region. Thick sloping walls made of rammed earth became a characteristic of traditional Buddhist monasteries throughout the Himalayas and became very common in northern Indian areas such as Sikkim. The technique spread to the Middle East, and to North Africa, and the city of Carthage was built of rammed earth. From there the technology was brought to Europe by the Romans.
  Rammed earth structures may be long lasting. Most of the Great Wall of China was made from rammed earth, as was the Alhambra in the Kingdom of Granada. In Northern Europe there are rammed earth buildings up to seven stories high and two hundred years old.
caption: Old school built of rammed earth in 1836–37 in Bonbaden, Hesse, Germany
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