Maltha

maltha

1. In ancient Roman construction, a type of bitumen, various cements, stuccos, and the like, used for repairing cisterns, roofs, etc.

2. A bituminous substance midway in consistency between asphalt and petroleum.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction. Copyright © 2003 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Maltha

 

a thick, viscous petroleum containing hydrocarbons and a large quantity of asphalt-resin constituents (not less than 35 percent). Density, about 1.0 g/cm³. It is commonly described as a product of petroleum resinification and polymerization, although certain scientists consider it to be the intermediate stage between the original organic petroleum-producing substance and petroleum itself.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.