Editing Brick (section)

=== Europe ===
{{Main|Roman brick}}
[[File:Woman&cat.jpg|thumb|right|Brick relief sculpture by [[Walter Ritchie]]]]
[[File:Trier - Aula Palatina.JPG|thumb|left|The [[Roman Empire|Roman]] Basilica [[Aula Palatina]] in [[Trier]], Germany, built with fired bricks in the fourth century as an audience hall for [[Constantine I]]]]

Early civilisations around the [[Mediterranean]], including the [[Ancient Greeks]] and [[Ancient Rome|Romans]], adopted the use of fired bricks. By the early first century CE, standardised fired bricks were being heavily produced in Rome.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Östborn |first1=Per |last2=Gerding |first2=Henrik |date=1 March 2015 |title=The Diffusion of Fired Bricks in Hellenistic Europe: A Similarity Network Analysis |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-014-9229-4 |journal=Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory |language=en |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=306–344 |doi=10.1007/s10816-014-9229-4 |s2cid=254606236 |issn=1573-7764}}</ref> The [[Roman legion]]s operated mobile [[kiln]]s,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Materials science in construction : an introduction|last=Ash|first=Ahmed|others=Sturges, John.|isbn=9781135138417|location=Abingdon, Oxon|oclc=896794727|date = 20 November 2014}}</ref> and built large brick structures throughout the [[Roman Empire]], stamping the bricks with the seal of the legion.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Roman Brick Stamps: Auxiliary and Legionary Bricks|url=http://www.romancoins.info/Legionary-Bricks.html|access-date=30 January 2022|website=}}</ref> The Romans used brick for walls, arches, forts, aqueducts, etc. Notable mentions of Roman brick structures are the Herculaneum gate of Pompeii and the [[baths of Caracalla]].<ref>{{Cite web |last1=2fm.pl |last2=BrickArchitecture.com |title=The History of Bricks and Brickmaking |url=https://brickarchitecture.com/about-brick/why-brick/the-history-of-bricks-brickmaking |access-date=5 December 2024 |website= |language=en}}</ref>

During the [[Early Middle Ages]] the use of bricks in construction became popular in [[Northern Europe]], after being introduced there from Northwestern Italy. An independent style of brick architecture, known as [[brick Gothic]] (similar to [[Gothic architecture]]) flourished in places that lacked indigenous sources of rocks. Examples of this architectural style can be found in modern-day Denmark, Germany, Poland, and [[Kaliningrad]] (former [[East Prussia]]).<ref>{{Cite web|last=Welle |first=Deutsche|title=Discover Brick Gothic architecture on the European route|url=https://www.dw.com/en/discover-brick-gothic-architecture-on-the-european-route/a-5637476|access-date=30 January 2022|website=[[Deutsche Welle]]|language=en-GB}}</ref>

[[File:Castillo de Malbork, Polonia, 2013-05-19, DD 04.jpg|thumb|[[Malbork Castle]] of the [[Teutonic Order]] in Poland – the largest brick castle in the world]]
This style evolved into the [[List of Brick Renaissance buildings|Brick Renaissance]] as the stylistic changes associated with the [[Italian Renaissance]] spread to northern Europe, leading to the adoption of [[Renaissance architecture|Renaissance]] elements into brick building. Identifiable attributes included a low-pitched hipped or flat roof, symmetrical facade, round arch entrances and windows, columns and pilasters, and more.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Italian Renaissance Revival Style 1890 - 1930 {{!}} PHMC > Pennsylvania Architectural Field Guide |url=http://www.phmc.state.pa.us/portal/communities/architecture/styles/italian-renaissance.html |access-date=4 December 2022 |website=}}</ref>

A clear distinction between the two styles only developed at the transition to [[Baroque architecture]]. In [[Lübeck]], for example, Brick Renaissance is clearly recognisable in buildings equipped with terracotta reliefs by the artist Statius von Düren, who was also active at [[Schwerin]] ([[Schwerin Castle]]) and [[Wismar]] (Fürstenhof).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Schloss Schwerin {{!}} Welterbe Schwerin |url=https://www.welterbe-schwerin.de/residenzensemble/schloss-schwerin |access-date=16 June 2024 |website= |language=de}}</ref>

Long-distance [[bulk transport]] of bricks and other construction equipment remained prohibitively expensive until the development of modern transportation infrastructure, with the construction of [[canal]], [[road]]s, and [[railway]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=General information on the history of the brick {{!}} Scotland's Brick and Tile Manufacturing Industry |url=https://www.scottishbrickhistory.co.uk/general-information-on-the-history-of-the-brick/ |access-date=16 June 2024 |website=}}</ref>