Instead of plastering entire surface of the masonry, special mortar finishing work is done to the exposed joints. This is called pointing. It consists of raking the joints to a depth of 10 mm to 20 mm and filling it with richer mortar mixes. In case of lime mortar pointing mix used is 1 : 2 and in case of cement mortar pointing mix used is 1 : 3. Pointing is ideally suited for stone masonry because stones are having attractive colours and good resistance to penetration by water. Pointing gives prefection to weaker part of masonry (i.e. to joints) and it adds to aesthetic view of the masonry.
The table 8.5 gives the comparison between plastering and pointing.
