{{short description|Archaeological term for baked clay building material}} '''Ceramic building material''', often abbreviated to '''CBM''', is an umbrella term used in archaeology to cover all building materials made from baked clay. It is particularly, but not exclusively, used in relation to Roman building materials.
It is a useful and necessary term because, especially when initially found in archaeological excavation, it may be difficult to distinguish, for example, fragments of bricks from fragments of roofing or flooring tiles. However, ceramic building materials are usually readily distinguishable from fragments of ceramic pottery by their rougher finish.
==See also== [[File:Brick wall (-29wiki).jpg|thumb|A typical brick wall.]] *{{annotated link|Adobe}} *{{annotated link|Antefix}} *{{annotated link|Architectural terracotta}} *{{annotated link|Brick}} *{{annotated link|Brickwork}} *{{annotated link|Clay#Clay as a building material|Clay}} *{{annotated link|Cob (material)}} *{{annotated link|Imbrex and tegula|aka=Roman roofing tiles}} *{{annotated link|Mudbrick}} *{{annotated link|Palmette}} *{{annotated link|Pilae stacks}} *{{annotated link|Roman brick}} *{{annotated link|Tile}}
==Further reading== *{{cite book |last=Brodribb|first=Gerald |authorlink=Gerald Brodribb |title=Roman Brick and Tile |publisher=Alan Sutton |place=Stroud |year=1987 |isbn=0-86299-363-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W4tLAAAACAAJ&q=Roman+brick+and+tile }} *{{cite book |last=Warry |first=P. |year=2006 |title=Tegulae: Manufacture, Typology and Use in Roman Britain |place=Oxford |publisher=Archaeopress }}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20120710053536/http://www.archaeology.co.uk/join-in/research-body/archaeological-ceramic-building-materials-group.htm ''Current Archaeology'' Archaeological Ceramic Building Materials Group] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20120426082547/http://www.soagarch.org.uk/vcbm.html South Oxfordshire Archaeological Group Ceramic Building Material Recording (Introduction)]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ceramic Building Material}} Category:Types of archaeological artefact Category:Ceramic materials Category:Soil-based building materials Category:Bricks