Illustrated History of Cement and Concrete

Beginning with prehistory and the first signs of man-made building materials more than 12,000 years ago, this book describes in 40 chapters the origins, development and application of the main binding materials gypsum, bitumen, lime and especially cement, the intermediate product for mortar and concrete. The book covers the span of time from the first known and traditional applications to the present day. The continuous development of cement has made it one of the most modern and successful building materials of all time. Due to its inexhaustible possibilities of application and design, the concrete produced from it is an invaluable source of inspiration for civil engineers and architects. It can be found in both civil engineering and building construction, it is extremely cost-effective and it can be used with high efficiency. Concrete and other building materials made of cement ensure our prosperity, our way of life and mobility. With more than 700 mostly colour illustrations, this book not only provides a comprehensive overview of the technical and historical sequence of individual events in relation to cement and concrete, but also extensively describes the political and economic environment as well as knowledge of the raw materials used and technical details. This combination of text and colourful illustrations makes reading interesting, highly instructive and easy to understand.
The book „Illustrated History of Cement and Concrete“ is aimed at those readers who deal with the building materials cement and concrete, be it in the construction or building materials industry, as teachers, students, but also the interested layperson.