Rammed earth construction is typical representative of Chinese ancient structures.Nowadays,the composition,mixture ratios and the craftsmanship used in rammed earth construction have almost been lost.The mechanical performance of rammed earth depends on its composition and ramming techniques,which are of great importance.The study on the components and performances of the old structures is very important for the protection of ancient rammed earth structures and for research on the craftsmanship of rammed earth structures.Therefore,the composition and craftsmanship used in the ancient rammed earth emplacement at Jiaoshan were studied,including water control,sticky soup preparation and so on.Comparative analyses of mechanical properties,composition,and X ray diffraction results,indicated that the ratio of earth to lime to pinyin,which is 4∶3,best approximates the composition of rammed earth used at Jiaoshan ancient emplacement.With this mixture ratio,good results have been reached in the repair of repair of the ancient emplacement at Jiaoshan.