As I have said elsewhere, people are naturally curious about my work, so I have put together answers to some of the most common questions I am asked.  If you would like more information, or if your particular enquiry isn’t covered here, feel free to contact me…

Do traditional dry stone walls contain any mortar?
 No although you will often see a concrete cap to finish off the top of a wall

How do the walls stay up?
The walls are double thickness, and held together by ‘hearting’ (see below) and large stones (throughbands) that go from one side of the wall to the other. These tie the sides together.

Can’t you just fill the middle with rubbish?
The ‘hearting’ or middle fill is as important as the stones on the outside. Each course (or layer) is backfilled with large flat stones placed within the cavity and between the tails of the facing stones. This then acts as binding material - as the wall settles it tightens and the wall becomes stronger.

What are the upright stones on the top called?
The coping stones or ‘toppers’ help protect the top of the wall from weathering. Historically they were a deterrent to sheep trying to jump over the wall – now perhaps they are more likely to deter two footed creatures. The style of alternating tall stones with short ones on the top in a regular sequence is called ‘buck & doe’ or ‘cock & hen’.

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