Atop the last courses of brick, bond beams made of heavy wood beams or modern reinforced concrete are laid to provide a horizontal bearing plate for the roof beams and to redistribute lateral earthquake loads to shear walls more able to carry the forces.
ɐtˈɑːp ðə lˈæst kˈoːɹsᵻz ʌv bɹˈɪk, bˈɑːnd bˈiːmz mˌeɪd ʌv hˈɛvi wˈʊd bˈiːmz ɔːɹ mˈɑːdɚn ɹˌiːɪnfˈoːɹst kˈɑːŋkɹiːt ɑːɹ lˈeɪd tə pɹəvˈaɪd ɐ hˌɔːɹɪzˈɔntəl bˈɛɹɪŋ plˈeɪt fɚðə ɹˈuːf bˈiːmz ænd tə ɹˌiːdˈɪstɹɪbjˌuːt lˈæɾɚɹəl ˈɜːθkweɪk lˈoʊdz tə ʃˈɪɹ wˈɔːlz mˈoːɹ ˈeɪbəl tə kˈæɹi ðə fˈoːɹsᵻz.