Background
The term brick refers to small units of building material, often made from
fired clay and secured with mortar, a bonding agent comprising of cement,
sand, and water. Long a popular material, brick retains heat, with-stands
corrosion, and resists fire. Because each unit is small—usually
four inches wide and twice as long, brick is an ideal material for
structures in confined spaces, as well as for curved designs. Moreover,
with minimal upkeep, brick buildings generally last a long time.
For the above-cited practical reasons and because it is also an
aesthetically pleasing medium, brick has been used as a building material
for at least 5,000 years. The first brick was probably made in the Middle
East, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now Iraq. Lacking
the stone their contemporaries in other regions used for permanent
structures, early builders here relied on the abundant natural materials
to
