plaster

A mixture of lime or gypsum, sand, and water that is applied to the walls of structures as a sealant. In the Southwest, many pueblos are made of adobe, which comes from the Spanish verb adobar, meaning “to plaster.” Part of the annual maintenance cycle of pueblo structures can include the ritual of whitewashing, or plastering, interior and exterior walls with a local derivative of plaster.

Photo Credit

 
"Plastered adobe, February 13, 2005," by Alan Levine is licensed under CC BY-SA.

References

 
Encyclopædia Britannica Online
     N.d.   Plaster. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/463671/plaster, accessed
         November 17, 2014.

Waldman, Carl
     1994   Adobe. Word Dance: The Language of Native American Culture. New York: Facts On
         File, Inc.