Brick sign
The brick symbol (abbreviated: ZZ ) is a sequence of letters, a logo or a simple motif to identify a brick .
In the 15th century it became a custom to date, sign or label bricks in order to document the origin and thus to ensure the quality of the bricks. Compliance with the dimensions and standards was also ensured in this way. Emperor Charles VI. laid down in a decree of 1715 that bricks should be marked with a mark.
Under the reign of Empress Maria Theresa , due to the rapidly increasing demand for building materials, the brick kiln privilege, which had been limited to the rulers until then, was revoked, so that anyone who owned land that had been found to be suitable by an expert could build a brick kiln and sell the products. This authorization was expressly confirmed again with the imperial patent of 1773.
Every brick manufacturer was obliged to provide all bricks fired in his kiln with a recognizable mark. Brick signs were mostly the initials of the brick factory owner incorporated into the brick model , which were sometimes also provided with a year or additional information. At the beginning of the 19th century, the general labeling requirement, especially in Austria and the eastern crown lands, was rigorously controlled and observed. In the simplest case, the brick sign was carved into the wooden brick model so that it was raised on the brick. In larger brickworks, iron plates were screwed into the brick model, which in some cases were also decorated.
The brick symbols make it possible to assign the bricks to the brick kilns in terms of time and location and to identify the construction phases of a building made of bricks.
Brick marks are not to be confused with brick stamps or stonemason's marks .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Cristian Ferdinand Ramml: Brick ovens and clay mining in the political districts of Mistelbach and Gänserndorf (Lower Austria): history and geology. (= Archive for deposit research. Volume 27). Vienna 2014. (PDF)
- ↑ Gerhard Zsutty: brick temple - Brick characters. Examples from the Vienna Brick Museum. (PDF) ( Memento from May 14, 2018 in the Internet Archive )
