Surviving bee boles are built in stone, brick, or cob walls; some found in sandstone walls have shaped, arched tops. Many stone bee boles are in drystone walls, but others are mortared. Generally, the height and width of a bee bole is between 12 and 18 in (30-45 cm) and the depth is similar or slightly less; those in Scotland tend to be a bit larger as skeps were often wrapped in sacks or dry bracken in the winter (in eastern Scotland, bee boles should not be confused with charter boles, which are generally much smaller.) Brick walls are typically narrower than stone walls, thus bee boles located in brick walls are typically shallower.