Bajra

Here is a dome the Nepali way. The mortar and plaster is rendered with bajra which includes pozzolanic  material like burnt brick pigments mixed with  sand and lime in 1:3:1 ratio. Bajra was very wide spread in the earlier times and it was probably brought to Nepal by Rana’s when they were building big palaces using European techniques. Cement has replaced this technique and now the skills to do this is pretty limited. Many people are restoring old building by stabilizing lime with white cement, which unfortunately, not only adds costs but inhibits breathing capability of lime.

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