In message , Simone Moffett <[log in to unmask]> writes
>Greetings to all!!
>
>I am new to the list serve and have had the pleasure of reading everyone's
>responses to the various queries that have been posted. I have a quick question
>that perhaps someone might have some information about. I am studying a house is
>Sussex County, Delaware that is constructed of "clinker" brick and I am trying
>to learn more about this building technique and its use. Has anyone come across
>this before? Is this fairly common in certain localities or is this unique to
>the Delaware area? Any information or references you could direct me to would be
>greatly appreciated.
>
'Clinker' bricks means different things in different times and places
(and languages).  In British English, 'clinkers' are what the Dutch call
IJsselstenen (or Gouse-stenen) - small yellow bricks from the Gouda /
River IJssel area.  They are characterised by their irregular lower
bedface, crease marks, and sunken margins and strike marks on the smooth
upper surfaces.  They were very widely traded [cargo!!!!] - from
Scandinavia to America.

While their hardness and high quality makes them particularly suitable
for paving, they are found in other contexts.  Often they are used to
provide a contrast with red bricks.

At one point in British English 'clinker' meant a low quality brick.

In Dutch, from whence the term is borrowed, it means a hard, impervious
brick - suitable for cisterns, flooring, etc, as the IJssel-bricks are,
but not limited to the 16th/17th century.

Best wishes to all,

Pat
(who received an email from a historian the other day: they were after
information about a landscape feature, and when I suggested I repost
their query onto histarch, they replied 'thanks, but no thanks - I'm not
interested in archaeology, only in history'!)

--
Pat Reynolds
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   "It might look a bit messy now, but just you come back in 500 years time"
   (T. Pratchett)