ABSTRACT
The light weight and the free form made it attractive for ceilings in public buildings like theatres or churches built between the 1890s and First World War Assessment of ceilings is complicated due to the lack of reliable documents or experimental results. For horizontal ceilings, the bearing-rods were just brought in position, and then the suspension wires were bent around to hold them in the right height. The assessment of Rabitz ceilings is made difficult by a lack of reliable sources for capacity. In the 1890s Carl Rabitz from Berlin patented his idea of a wire mesh covered with gypsum mortar to protect constructions from fire by patent. A variety of experiments was carried out with different fixings for the suspension wire and showing a higher load capacity than asserted in standard and contemporary literature. Rabitz constructions, invented at the end of the 19th century, were designed to protect the wooden or steel supporting structure from the effects of fire.
