Plaster has been an integral part of construction throughout history. Well before the Pilgrims, the Romans, the Greeks and the Egyptians built the monuments we admire today, people were building with plaster. The earliest evidence of plaster found in the world, thus far, was in Southern Turkey and Northern Syria in hearths as early as 12,000 B.C., even before farming was developed.
Plaster is a material that has served builders for generations. Amazingly, it is still just as useful today as it was thousands of years ago, albeit with some improvements. In its purest form plaster is still very similar to how it was 14,000 years ago. Modern plaster still takes the form of a wet “mud” which is spread of some type of surface, typically porous, until it is smooth. We’ve seen some advancement in the tools used and some of the ingredients incorporated, but the process and materials are largely the same.
The Origins of Plaster
Today we use metal and plastic tools, which typically give us better and smoother finishes, but originally builders had to use tools made of wood. Plaster was made of a simple clay/dirt “mud,” making it a fairly simple process to apply and use plaster in a building process.
The Egyptians added gypsum to the plaster mix, making their buildings more resilient. The Greeks added lime, further enhancing their buildings. Both used local materials to enhance the existing process and develop the usefulness of plaster even further. The Romans copied the Greeks, as they did for many things, and spread the use of plaster throughout their empire, arguably the reason we now use plaster in our modern homes.
Modern Plaster
Our modern uses for plaster are wide and varied, but still, take their influence from the past. Incorporating designs and custom inlays are just a part of how we use plaster today. Plaster is a fantastic option for home builders looking for better thermals or soundproofing, and it allows them to add something unique to their home.
Modern tools like heat-treated stainless steel, plastic trowels, and more metal and plastic tools make it easy to achieve designs that could have taken days or were downright impossible in the past. We owe these changes to the industrial revolution of the late 1800s, which completely changed the binders that held the plaster together.
We no longer needed to rely on local materials like gypsum and lime, but could globally distribute plaster thanks to the new binders. Oil gave us easily controllable energy and the necessary heat to activate these new binders, so it made it easy to transport plaster to a much wider geographic area.
Our modern plaster selection is wide, and each is tailored for a specific kind of use. Whether it’s a climate or a purpose, there’s a form of plaster that will fit a building need. Gypsum formal work, veneer plaster, traditional lime-sand-fiber, Venetian plaster, or ultra-modern synthetic plaster, there are many options for modern buildings. Every single one has certain strengths and weaknesses, so builders will often choose the one that best fits their project.
With thousands of years of history behind the use of plaster, it’s no wonder it’s still widely used today and is an integral part of the modern building. If you need plastering done in your home or business give us a call.