[Cob] drying time

[Terra Incognita]

Last summer, I worked here and there on a cob bench at a friend's house. We got about half way through before we each had to leave town for a bit with the idea that we would continue this year once it warmed up. Back in town and checking it out recently, I was shocked that the bench has not dried. The cob is still pliable and I can poke into it with my finger to some degree. It was wrapped in a tarp at the end of august last year and recently unwrapped now that winter has finally ended here in upstate new york. I figure that the tarp must have maintained a moist environment until the temperature dipped below freezing and that it has become moist again since thawing, with the moisture still retained by the tarp. Does this hypothesis seem likely to you all as well? 
       
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