rock-work

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rock-work.
1. Erroneous term for rock-faced or quarry-faced ashlar.

2. Correct term for a structure in a garden constructed of large fragments of rock, imitation rocks, broken bricks, and other materials, held together with mortar, the cavities further filled with earth, pebbles, and plants, intended to look ‘natural’. Sometimes it was contrived to look like very large rocks, or even natural cliff-like faces as though a path had been cut through rock (but entirely artificial). Rock-work was often associated with grottoes, fountains, hermitages, and labyrinths in C18 landscaped gardens. Good examples exist at Wörlitz, Anhalt, by Eyserbeck, Erdmannsdorff, and the Schochs.