“Bricks. That’s right, bricks.”

Ed. Note: I love stuff like this, truly. I also drink high ABV beers so there may be a bit of a correlation there. But seriously, don’t ever hesitate to email me at [email protected] with your finds. Thanks to Tom Hershenson for sending and explaining these great details.

“Dear PoPville,

Just wanted to share three recently spotted examples of the unusual (and even whimsical) in DC masonry bonds:

“Roman” bond on Biltmore St. NW — note how, on one row (a “course”) of brick, the horizontal lines between the bricks, rather than intersecting with the middle of the bricks of the courses immediately above and below, intersect the bricks above/below at a third of a way along the brick. Also, look how much longer these bricks are compared to red ones:

“English Cross” bond on Ordway St. NW — while most of the courses are bricks laid end-to-end (so-called stretchers) to form a “running” bond, notice how the second course from the top alternates a stretcher then a header (a brick turned 90 degrees from the stretcher orientation, so that its end faces out). That sequence occurs again at the 8th course from the top…and again in the (somewhat obscured) 14th row. All the headers in all the courses should line up vertically; alas only the 2nd and 8th rows do, with the 14th slightly misaligned:

Here, a bit of whimsy on Alton Pl. NW, with the D.C.-ubiquitous “common” bond (several running courses, then a course of headers, then running courses again, blah blah blah *yawn*…) interrupted by rectangles: three “soldiers” (bricks oriented with their long side vertical) enclosing three-brick stacks composed of stretchers: