3. There are three kinds of bricks. First, the kind called in Greek Lydian, being that which our people use, a foot and a half long and one foot wide. The other two kinds are used by the Greeks in their buildings. Of these, one is called πεντάδωρον, is the Greek for “palm,” for in Greek δῶρον means the giving of gifts, and the gift is always presented in the palm of the hand. A brick five palms square is called Public buildings are constructed of πεντάδωρα, private of τετράδωρα.
Vitruvius: The Ten Books on Architecture. Vitruvius. Morris Hicky Morgan. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. London: Humphrey Milford. Oxford University Press. 1914.
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