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{{about||the Indian politician|Surendra Lath|the machine tool|lathe}}

{{Seealso|lat (disambiguation)}}

[[File:Lath.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Lath seen from the back with hardened plaster from the other side showing through]]

A '''lath''' is a thin, narrow strip of some straight-grained wood or other material, including [[metal]] or [[gypsum]]. A '''lattice''', or '''lattice-work''', is a criss-crossed or interlaced arrangement of laths, or the pattern made by such an arrangement. Lath is the basic material used in the formerly common building technique known as [[lath and plaster]], which was used to make interior walls.

==Name==
The word stems from Old English ''laett'', Mid. Eng. ''lappe'', a form possibly due to the Welsh ''liath''; the word appears in many Teutonic languages, e.g. Dutch ''lat'', German ''Latte'', and has passed into Romanic, cf. Italian ''latta'', French ''latte''), denoting a thin, flat strip made of wood or possibly another material.

==Uses==
Today, laths are still used in building construction to form a base or groundwork for [[plaster]] (modern [[lath and plaster]] applications are mostly limited to conservation projects)<ref name="National Park Service Briefs">[http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/TPS/briefs/brief21.htm#Historical%20Background, National Park Service: Preservation Brief 21: Repairing Historic Flat Plaster--Walls and Ceilings]</ref>, [[tile]]s, [[slate]]s, and other coverings, e.g. [[roof]]ing. Such strips of wood are also employed to form lattice-work, or are used as the bars of venetian blinds or shutters.
Riven lath is the stronger forerunner to sawn lath, as it was traditionally split with the grain from chestnut, oak, or similar hardwoods. Laths were also used to fix reed to a timber structure before plastering.

Lath cut from spruce or balsam fir trees are used for building wooden lobster traps. 

==Historical significance==
[[File:Lath, Kent.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Inch-wide laths after the plaster has been knocked off (under stairs, [[Kent]], UK)]]

A window with a lattice painted red was formerly a common inn-sign (cf. Shakespeare, 2 Hen. IV. ii. 2. 86); frequently the window was dispensed with, and the sign remained painted on a board.

Gypsum lath consists of gypsum plaster sandwiched between two sheets of absorbent paper. It was invented in 1910, and multiple variations were developed in the 1930s. Gypsum lath is commonly used in place of wood since it is noncombustible, easy to use, and gives better results. The [[lath and plaster]] method's popularity declined in the 1950s, as it was replaced by the more efficient [[drywall]].

==See also==
{{wiktionary}}
*[[Garden trellis]]
*[[Lathart]]
*[[Lattice truss bridge]]
*[[Plasterwork#Laths]]

{{1911}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Decorative arts]]
[[Category:Building materials]]


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