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Brick is one of the oldest building materials across the world. The mud brick was invented between 10,000 BC and 8,000 BC, while moulded brick was developed later in Mesopotamia about 5000 BC. However, the most significant landmark was the invention of the fired brick in 3500 BC. It was this that enabled the construction of permanent structures in areas where it had been previously impossible.
In India, the use of brick can been found as early as the Indus Valley cities. They continued to be used by Buddhist and Hindu builders. Prior to the Gupta period, approximately 320-550 AD, temples were generally made of timber or other perishable materials. The full potential of using brick was explored for the first time during the Gupta period. In Uttar Pradesh (UP), one can find several brick temples like the Bhitargaon temple in Kanpur district and Bhitari in Ghazipur district belonging to this period. Many more scattered examples can also be found in the Gangetic plains. This trend continued up to the ninth century. These examples give an idea of the development of brick and brick construction techniques prior to the advent of Muslims in India with their arcuated systems.
The potential of using rock, dressed stone and brick was explored for the first time during the Gupta period. It was characterised by a more reasoned application of structural principles. Mahendravarman's1 inscription in the Mamallapuram monoliths states that traditional architects erected religious structures in brick, timber, metal, mortar and plaster (Saran & Singh 1994). Along with monoliths, ashlar stone and timber as well as dry stone masonry was the order of the Gupta period. However, in UP, one can find several groups of brick temples of this period, for example, the Bhitargaon temple in Kanpur district.
The tradition of manufacturing all types of bricks flourished after the Gupta period. These bricks were of different shapes and sizes; the large sized bricks were used to cover drains, the pitted or honeycombed bricks were used for sockets or pivots of doors, bricks of sizes larger than those used in the walls were used for flooring, L-shaped bricks were used for comers and the wedged shaped bricks were needed for rounding. The bricks could be laid flat, on edge,...